


His sacrifice

by DragonPrincess22



Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Corpse is a soft boy, Corpse is misuderstood, Dogs are now roses, Don't question the last one., I don't know what i'm doing actually, I wasn't actually gonna publish this but here we are, I'm ashamed of myself, Magic, Multi, Murder, My First Work in This Fandom, Sacrifice, and you can't change my mind
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-14 23:48:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 24,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29179782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonPrincess22/pseuds/DragonPrincess22
Summary: "So, a decision had been made." Everyone held their breath. "There will be a sacrifice." Some let out a shuddering breath and paled. The children were bug-eyed and the elderly were quiet. Parents feared the loss of their children, some in the age range for the sacrifice."The council has come to an agreement, the drought is bad and insects have settled in our crops. We must give a pure sacrifice to appease the master within." Sykkuno briefly wondered who would be pure, his friends became a ghastly white. "The sacrifice has already been decided, and a date set for the sunset of tomorrow.”“Please give your love to our sacrifice Sykkuno."OrSykkuno gets sacrificed to a forest of death, let's write about it.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Corpse Husband & Sykkuno (Video Blogging RPF), Corpse Husband/Sykkuno (Video Blogging RPF), others
Comments: 213
Kudos: 745





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Well, this is breaking my own rules but like, I'm lowkey proud of this story. 
> 
> If any of the people mentioned in this story find it somehow, for some reason, and express discomfort over it. It will be gone, no questions asked. There will be no sexualization as these are real people and I know Corpse has expressed discomfort with it. That's all I got tbh.
> 
> Um, yeah....Enjoy?
> 
> Also, special thanks to my new friend and beta reader GhostMoon for making this story less of a piece of crap! Really, I appreciate it mate.

There was a creature in the forest, no one had ever seen it but its presence remains. Some say it's a monster that only comes at night to eat children. Some rumor it's a spirit, angry with the treatment towards the forest. A few speak of a voice deeper than any man's, a voice that shook someone to their core. All children were raised with this story, told not to go to the forest lest they meet a terrible fate. And, sometimes young men and women were sacrificed to the forest and by extent, the monster; Never to be heard from again. It was a death sentence. 

Sykkuno never thought much about it, he was 28 now and he had lots of friends. Toast, Rae, Poki, and Lily. A few years back Lily went to the forest and never returned, they all mourned her and were given a grim reminder. The forest was not to be messed with.

But, everyone could tell this year wasn't going well. The harvest was meager and almost non-existent. The ground cracking as drought set in. People were afraid they angered the creature in some way and the talk of sacrifice was soon brought up. Young men and women all began to sweat, wondering if it would be them, sentenced to death. But, no information was given. Finally, a meeting was called and everyone gathered to listen in.

"So, a decision has been made." Everyone held their breath. "There will be a sacrifice." Some let out a shuddering breath and paled. The children were bug-eyed and the elderly were quiet. Parents feared the loss of their children, some in the age range for the sacrifice. 

"The council has come to an agreement, the drought is bad and insects have settled in our crops. We must give a pure sacrifice to appease the monster within." Sykkuno briefly wondered who would be that pure, his friends became a ghastly white. "The sacrifice has already been decided, and a date set for the sunset of tomorrow.”

  
  


“Please give your love to our sacrifice Sykkuno." 

  
  


And like that the world shattered, Sykkuno went through at least 3 stages of grief at once as Toast pulled him to his chest as the kind boy started sobbing. Poki was holding back Rae as the fiery woman looked like she was gonna kill everyone for even considering such a thing, rage burned in her eyes. It was always them against the world, and now Sykkuno would be gone. Just like Lily.

Sykkuno couldn't tell you what happened next, he was gently carried home as the world came crashing around him. He was going to die, the fact made him cry harder. He wasn't ready to die, he wasn't.

That night the four housemates cuddled on the couch, just holding Sykkuno as close as they could. Rae looked poised, but the anger was still in her eyes. How dare they take her best friend away, the audacity. Poki looked unsure how to react, eyeing the other female almost nervously. Toast hadn't said a word, he just held the broken boy in his arms as Sykkuno couldn't stop crying.

"T-toast." Sykkuno choked out 

"Shh, Sykkuno. Everything will be okay." Toast said, but none of them truly believed that. 

"I swear I will kill them all," Rae whispered under her breath, no one responded to her blood lust and they shared it just not as openly. 

Too soon the sun rose on a new day, and at sunset, Sykkuno was to be sent to the forest where he would inevitably be killed by the monster that resides. The four eventually stood, not speaking a word as their last breakfast together was made and served, everyone watching the man of the day. His eyes still patchy and red, it hurt his friends to see him like this. 

Sykkuno had never felt such emptiness, the food stared at him, and yet it couldn't fill the emptiness. How does one cope with the fact that in a matter of hours they will be sent to their death? He would join Lily in the afterlife, he had missed the kind girl.

And an hour before the sun grew low in the sky, Sykkuno dressed in a gray shirt with a green jacket over it. Simple black pants and his favorite fur boots. Delicately wrapped around his neck was a scarf of which he buried his face into once it was placed onto him by a resigned Poki.

Then, they set out on their death march. The three friends following Sykkuno solemnly, blood lust bleeding to contentment as reality set in. The villagers watched their march with straight or even sad faces, maybe even pitiful. And as the sunset, everyone was there to see the pure boy off. Everyone there knew that he didn't deserve such a fate. Yet, they could do nothing.

"I want you guys to stay together and stay happy, I know one day we'll meet again," Sykkuno says and they nod. Rae goes through all five stages of grief at once, Poki looks practically dead, and Toast is unreadable. 

"I love you guys." He said softly with a smile, a genuine one that unlike the others before it wasn't covered. The other three immediately hugged him and yelled "We love you too Sykkuno!" 

It took a few tries, but they were separated, and everyone respectfully nodded their head as Sykkuno took a deep breath before entering the dark woods before him. It shuddered with life around him and he thought maybe this wasn't the worst place to die. Back in the village, people slowly returned to their homes as darkness set in. The three friends are the only ones left, staring into the forest their friend, their family member, had just walked into. 

A scream tore into the night and it took a moment to recognize it as the agonized scream of Rae as she screamed at the world. Cursing the world for everything. She sank to her knees and screamed herself horse, the others watching with a sense of understanding. 

What were they gonna do now?


	2. (Not so) Deadly Roses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Suddenly there was a sharp clang behind him and he startled turning quickly to see a flash of lime green pass by as a sharp blue-colored ax cuts through what could be called a shadow. The person stood there for a moment, they were wearing a lime green hoodie that was carefully pulled over their hair. In their hand was the blue ax now covered in what could be called purple blood. The other turned to him revealing a simple white mask with a smiley face on it. "

The ground didn't crush, a soft almost blue colored grass greets his every step, and it squished beneath his feet softly. He occasionally stopped to admire the plants of the forest. He figured he was gonna die anyway, so why bother to try and escape. He was almost intrigued with the magical life in the forest, the plants seemed to be alive and they all greeted him warmly. He barely noticed he'd entered a darker part of the forest, and in the clearing was a patch of just roses. They were ruby red and beautiful. He could feel the presence, the one they speak of, but it was faint. Almost far away. Yet, he felt eyes on him as he softly made his way deeper into the forest that would be his final resting place, towards the roses. He began to wonder how he would die. Would it be quick or would he bleed out slowly?

He then softly sat down and ran his hands over the soft petals of some seemingly thornless roses. He watched a bug land on the bud and get eaten up quickly by teeth hidden in soft red petals. He jumped a bit, wondering why the flowers didn't bite him. He felt the eyes once more and sighed as he accepted his fate. 

Suddenly there was a sharp clang behind him and he startled turning quickly to see a flash of lime green pass by as a sharp blue-colored ax cuts through what could be called a shadow. The person stood there for a moment, they were wearing a lime green hoodie that was carefully pulled over their hair. In their hand was the blue ax now covered in what could be called purple blood. The other turned to him revealing a simple white mask with a smiley face on it. 

"I've never seen someone get this close to  _ his  _ roses." The other remarked and Sykkuno didn't know how to respond when the roses came up begging for his attention. They seemed to have a mind of their own as they gently pressed themselves into the soft boy. Almost like house cats. 

The masked man let out a small huff, watching the usually dangerous flowers cuddle up to this new person he's never met before. Sykkuno's attention turned to the roses and he pets them gently. Their petals were so soft! 

"Dream?" A voice asked and the masked man looked up as another man entered the clearing of deadly, or maybe not so deadly, roses. "What's happenin- Oh, no! You have to help him Dream! The roses will eat him. You know how he hates it when people touch  _ his  _ roses!!" 

"No, I'm sure he's fine George. They're cuddling up to him like house cats." Dream replied and both watched Sykkuno pet the roses that acted like they weren't gonna bite anyone who wasn't Sykkuno. 

"He still can't stay here," George muttered and Dream thought for a moment. 

"We'll take him there. You know where." Dream says and the other looks at him like he's insane.

"You haven't talked to  _ him _ in years, what if he kills you?" George worries

"You worry too much Gogy, me and him go way back." Dream says

Meanwhile, Sykkuno was watching the exchange a little confused as to who  _ he _ was. The roses which apparently were deadly just kinda made themselves at home. 

"Hey, so I'm Dream. This is George. And you are?" Dream asks

"Oh Jesus! My name is Sykkuno." The soft anime boy said standing quickly. The other two wearily eye the roses but they just and back to their passive state. 

All except one, that unrooted itself and gently buried itself into Sykkuno's hair, sticking up almost like a bean sprout except a rose with teeth and violent tendencies. Sykkuno blushed and the other two had similar, well, probably had similar expressions of shock. Not that you could see with Dream's mask. 

"Come with us Sykkuno, you won't survive here. Even with your...pet." Dream says

"I'm gonna name you Bimbus." The rose gently nuzzles his head as if to say it liked the name. Welp, Dream and George had never seen anything like this.

"I've seen those roses eat animals 10 times their size, and yet here we have it innocently tangling itself in Sykkuno's hair." Dream mutters and George nods

"It's quite strange." George pipes up softly. 

"We should go,  _ he  _ probably already senses us." Dream mutters and the other two follow, both veterans eyeing newly named Bimbus. They swear that rose acts all innocent and pet-like, but those things are bloody terrifying. 

"So who is  _ he? _ " Sykkuno asks

"We don't speak his name, he already knows we're here. We don't want to summon him, he will be pissed to be interrupted." Dream mentioned 

"Are you sure about this?" George whispered 

"Of course, but if he tries to hurt you know I'll always protect you. "Dream says and the two lock eyes. Sykkuno watches as the two seem to enter their own world. And he was pretty oblivious, but even he could see the love. Sykkuno coughs gently and the two pull apart with a blush, Bimbus shifts in his hair before falling asleep. Who knew roses could sleep. 

"Um, let's go." Dream said and the trio set off. Occasionally watching Bimbus sleep on Sykkuno's head. Snoozing softly. But you couldn't miss the looks his newest companions were giving each other. As they walked, they ran into many creatures. Except for the fact Sykkuno was practically untouched cause everyone and everything but Sykkuno and the owner feared those roses. Literally everyone. 

They finally made it to a grand, but also a quaint village in a clearing that was widened and lightened by soft purple like magic. He was amazed, never having seen anything like it. 

"Wow." He whispered softly 

"Sykkuno?!" A familiar voice asked and he froze when he recognized it.

"Lily?!?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, Suprise! Sykkuno isn't dead. Big shocker I know. I'm 99% sure everyone expected him to be fine...I tried I guess...
> 
> And I know everyone was worried about Lily....Anyway, I lowkey know nothing about writing Dream and George but my BFF4L cleared it and gave tips so...yay. The next chapter comes out, whenever I feel like it I guess...


	3. To kill half the village.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Um, murder plans. That's bout it.

Everyone heard Rae's scream, and yet no one said anything. Did anything. What's left of what used to be a group of 5 go back to their home where it had never felt emptier. They had lost two friends to that forest. That damn forest.

"What are we gonna do?" Poki asked softly

"What can we do Poki? He's gone!!" Rae shouted before slamming her head on the table. Toast didn't say much, lost in thought for one reason or another. Rae raised her head from the table and let out a loud sigh.

"I want blood! Cursing the land be damned, I rather go join Sykkuno in that forest than live here anymore!" Rae raved and the other two didn't say anything. Cause they too were ready to go on a murder spree. 

"If we were to do that, we would need some sort of plan," Toast added

"Easy, we kill them all and run into the forest where we all die with our other friends," Rae said

"It's more complicated than that Rae," Poki mentioned softly

"Yeah, there is a number of variables. Like, who were the ones who made the decision? And when will we commit the murder? We don't need an alibi with your...plan. Really we need specific targets and times." Toast said, his big brain working to their advantage.

"So find the bastards who wanted Sykkuno sacrificed, kill them at the right time, and run into the forest to complete the story?" Rae says and Toast nods.

"I can ask around, I'm pretty popular around here. I can get information." Poki says

"I could too," Rae adds

"No Rae, you have to gather weapons. Any ones you want." Toast said and the girl smirked evilly

"What about you Toast?' Poki asked

"Don't worry about that, let's just say I'm the mastermind." Toast said and the others laugh.

Poki immediately slips out to gather information, easily learning things due to her popularity in the village. On top of what was released to the public, and with that she was able to make a hit list for the trio.

Rae casually chatted with the local blacksmith about weapons, saying she and her friends were moving towns and would need weapons in transition. The blacksmith didn't suspect a thing and agreed to help her choose the perfect weapons. Cause, Rae wasn't technically lying.

Toast sat at his desk, a plan being formed before him as he came up with the plan. He needed a who, and when they would all be in the same place. But, otherwise, he had a number of ideas on how to smoothly murder and run to the forest. And almost on cue, Poki enters his study and sets down a list of names and some other information she had written. 

"You're right on time Poki, I'm surprised with how fast you gathered this info." Toast complemented.

"What can I say? I'm popular." Poki said and Toast chuckled as he plugged in the new information. He then frowned deeply. 

"The only time they'll be together is Sykkuno's memorial…" Toast mentioned softly and Poki also frowned

The town planned a memorial for the boy they sacrificed, the sacrifice worked as the sky turned grey and it rained soon after Sykkuno left. Though, really these events were unrelated. They didn't need to know that, if they slept better at night. 

"I'm sure Sykkuno won't mind, we can give him a proper funeral once we reach the forest. If only in our imaginations before our inevitable doom." Poki says and Toast nods. 

The door slams open and closed and a loud clattering was heard as a bunch of things hit their dining table. The two exchanged an amused glance before leaving to find Rae happily organizing a pile of different weapons.

"Nice pile you got there," Poki mentioned and Rae beamed 

"Yup, I got them half off," Rae said with a smirk

"Now, we should get to the plan then." Toast said and the girls nodded. 

_ Meanwhile, _ in a room that darkness transcends the other blacks in the world. A lone form lay on a soft black bed, curly black hair blending in with the pillow. The shift before sitting up and placing their hands over their face.

They gently sigh darkly into their hands, as if it would make the world go away. It must be one of  _ those _ days then. They let out a low growl before prying their hands away. And for a moment, they are captivated by the shattered mirror in their room. Their own sore knuckles telling a story.

They can feel them in their territory, which was a massive part of the forest. They recognized 2, but the third stumped him. Was it another one of those villages’ ideas of a sacrifice? Frankly, it's kinda annoying. But, if they didn't he wouldn't have the town he worked hard to build in this magically cleared area. 

He feels numbness in his limbs and just relaxes once more on his bed. He didn't want to strain anything like this, he just wasn't getting out of bed today. He pressed a button on the side of the bed, near a silvery set of rings and chains. He then just rolled back into his sheets as they moved through his land. 

His head started pounding and he drew deeper into the covers, sighing out heavily as the world lay down on him. Today was just not a good day. He tried to just relax but the anxiety of the presence getting closer to him just made his already bad day worse. He tried to breathe a bit more, it was hard when his throat wanted to close up and was generally sore. He just couldn't do it. He curled up in black sheets and resigned to laying in his bed. He didn't care nor have the energy to do anything more. Today was a bad day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, more updates and stuff.............. Um, if you want to see some fanart that I made for the AU you can check out my Insta @dragonp22, Or don't lol. I don't really care lmao. Just, look at the top few posts and ignore any others. They don't exist. At the time of writing this note, I only have Corpse, Sykkuno, and Dream. I plan to do more.


	4. Flowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Sykkuno then sat on the bed, he lay back and think about what was happening. Firstly he wasn't dead. That was probably most surprising. Lily wasn't dead. That made him think about the others, how were they? He was sure Rae was already plotting some kind of murder. "

Sykkuno hugged Lily close, having not seen her for years. He thought for sure that she was dead. Everyone had thought she died. Yet, here she was, completely unharmed.

"I missed you," Sykkuno says softly and Lily smiles

"I missed you to- Holy crap!" She jumped away from the rose atop Sykkuno's head. The poor boy looked so confused. Lily made some interesting squeaking noises as she pointed at Bimbus which sleepily curled in Sykkuno's hair. Dream started wheezing like a tea kettle. 

"Oh Jesus! What's wrong Lily?!" Sykkuno asked genuinely worried. Lily made a few more noises before silently looking at Bimbus. 

"Only you Sykkuno. Only you." Lily muttered and Sykkuno looked around confused, making cute eh sounds. Dream was leaning into George as he laughed, his boyfri- good friend held him as if this happened often. Which, maybe it did.

"Oh! Do you like Bimbus? He's a sweetheart." Sykkuno said excitedly

"He named it!?!" Lily asked and Dream continued to laugh, so George nodded for him. 

Sykkuno was petting the rose, and if it had a tail it would be wagging it. This one acted more like a dog than its brethren, but it was still off-putting to the other people. Not that Sykkuno noticed as he pet his dog-rose thing. 

"Are you going to visit  _ him _ ?" Lily asked them and they all immediately got serious. Sykkuno sweat nervously, wondering just who they were talking about. He seemed very important but they never spoke his name. 

"Unfortunately, but Sykkuno needs a place to stay in the meantime." Dream mentioned bitterly

"He'll kill you Dream." Lily insisted

"Why do you guys keep saying that? We go way back, I know him better than everyone else. Except for a number of people." Dream mentioned trailing off.

"Do you know how he's been recently?" George asks, knowing they don't want to catch him on a bad day.

"It's been pretty bad actually, he's had 5 bad days just this month. I don't really know, but I think today is also a bad day. Which, considering your here it can only get worse." Lily mentioned

"Great." Both George and Dream sighed 

Sykkuno was confused, so instead, he played with his new rose pet. That had the effect of scaring everything else away. Only the shadows were ballsy enough, that's what Dream specialized in.

"Uh, Lily?" Sykkuno asks

"Yes, Sykkuno," Lily responded 

"Why...Why didn't you come back?" Sykkuno asks softly "We all missed you, Rae, Toast, Poki." 

"I...I had planned to go back Sykkuno, but then I met someone and well…" She flashed a ring "We're getting married." 

"Oh Jesus! Lily that's amazing!" Sykkuno cheered.

"Maybe you'll find someone too Sykkuno," Lily said

"Oh no, you know girls don't like me that way." Sykkuno denied, hiding his smile with his hand and he giggled. Lily smiled, glad that he didn't change. They then looked over to see Dream and George having a moment, the two both giggled at that. 

“I love you, George.” Dream mutters as he often does

“Sh-shut up.” George looked away blushing slightly

"You should stay the night, you probably want to deal with him on a better day." Lily then mentioned

The other three ended up staying the night. Lily casually shoved Dream and George into a guest room and locked the door. She then smiled at Sykkuno innocently as she opened a door next to it. 

The guest bedroom was quaint, a warm-colored bed that was made. The room rather clean and perfect for a guest room. It was then Sykkuno realized the only clothes he had was what he was wearing now. 

He went into the room and nuzzled his scarf slightly, it was slightly warm and it made him smile. He felt Bimbus shift and he reached up to pet the rose, who knew that not only would he be alive but he would have a rose for a pet. One that everyone was scared of for no reason. 

Sykkuno then sat on the bed, he lay back and think about what was happening. Firstly he wasn't dead. That was probably most surprising. Lily wasn't dead. That made him think about the others, how were they? He was sure Rae was already plotting some kind of murder. 

He felt Bimbus shift before settling down again, he giggled at the rose that tickled his forehead. He heard banging from the room next door and assumed it was Dream and George trying to get out. 

Sykkuno then took off his shoes and coat, gently placing his scarf to the side. He then lay on the bed where Bimbus curled up and snoozed. He smiled sweetly and went to sleep to the sound of his neighbors giving up on getting out of the room.

_ The world around him was beautiful, with green grass beneath him and a pure blue sky. There were lots of plants, many of which he had seen in the forest. All except the rose that Bimbus was. It was beautiful. _

_ Suddenly, he spotted something. It was black, unlike the bright colors around it. He moved closer and realized that it was another person. Curled in on themselves by a black tree with long black leaves. The ground around them was rotted and above them is a small rain cloud drenching them.  _

_ They had the curliest black hair Sykkuno had ever seen, their skin pale. On their hands were shiny silvery rings and chipped black nails. At his approach he was met with one red eye, red as in he was crying, and in the fact, his eye was tinted red. The rest of his face was covered by a mask and eyepatch respectively. They just stared at him for a moment.  _

_ "Hey, you okay?" Sykkuno asks softly and the other continues to just stare at him. Sykkuno laughs awkwardly at himself. "You probably want to be left alone...But. if you want company I could…"  _

_ The other continues to just stare at him, it was almost unnerving. Yet, the one eye visible speaks volumes. Showing sadness and pain, unlike any Sykkuno had seen.  _

_ "You'll uh, you'll catch a cold. Here." Sykkuno then raised an umbrella that he didn't notice he had until he raised it above the other's head. The other’s eye flickered between Sykkuno and the umbrella, for a moment. Sykkuno smiled at the other and the other does the usual staring strategy. Sykkuno then sat down and the grass began to revive itself. He pulls the other in for a hug and surprisingly his clothes don’t get soaked from the other.  _

_ And then for a moment, all was quiet, except for the soft rain that lightened significantly when Sykkuno entered the picture. And that's how they fell asleep, both of them. Under the umbrella.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why are you still here? Reading this story. 
> 
> Now fully edited, I guess...


	5. Murder at a memorial.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The three had been distracted before, but they could only think about their friend now. The innocent bean didn't deserve to be thrown out to die like that. Poki missed her little bean sprout. He was no doubt dead by now, he didn’t deserve to be sacrificed. To be killed like this. There is a line that would’ve sacrificed themselves instead, yet when it was announced everyone knew it couldn’t be stopped. 
> 
> “Why don’t we talk about him? Give a proper memorial.” Toast mentioned and they nodded

Getting ready to massacre a group of people was surprisingly easy, then again they had Toast on their side. Rae had more than enough blood lust for the three of them, and Poki does as Poki does.

"So, now we wait," Poki mentions as they had spent weeks planning, preparing, and training. Now, it was the day. But, it was also Sykkuno's memorial. 

The three had been distracted before, but they could only think about their friend now. The innocent bean didn't deserve to be thrown out to die like that. Poki missed her little bean sprout. He was no doubt dead by now, he didn’t deserve to be sacrificed. To be killed like this. There is a line that would’ve sacrificed themselves instead, yet when it was announced everyone knew it couldn’t be stopped. 

“Why don’t we talk about him? Give a proper memorial.” Toast mentioned and they nodded

“I remember when we first met Sykkuno.” Poki started and the others looked at her “We were all children, and some kids were bullying Sykkuno cause of his smile. I had never seen Rae so angry before then.” She choked out a laugh “ I remember how L-lily went over and asked if Sykkuno was okay and he just smiled lightly at her. He was always so bright.” Poki wiped away the tears that threatened to fall.

“Yeah...I remember when we all moved in together. Just the 5 of us. Sykkuno was really nervous, but we assured him it would be perfect. But, then Lily...Lily went to the forest...I remember how we all cried together…” Rae continued and both girls looked like crying

“I remember how he always covered his smile, I remember how the girls in the village always went after him but he was too oblivious to notice. He always said girls weren’t into him, but everyone knew they were. “ Toast added, you could tell his throat was closed with grief.

“Sykkuno was the brightest light in our group,” Poki started as Rae started to pour some glasses. “And now we have to honor his last wishes. We will be together till the end. And, we will rember all he is and not what he could’ve been.” 

“A toast, to our dear friend Sykkuno,” Rae said, usually Toast would joke about the word but didn’t have it in him. 

“To Sykkuno,” The three said clinking their glasses together and taking a drink. They then had a moment of silence for their friend. It was ruined by the ring of church bells, the three immediately stood and grabbed their weapons. _ It was time. _

Poki was closest to the door, she stood and held it open for her friends. Then, the three found themselves once again doing a death march. Yet, they were not contempt. They were boiling over with rage. Skipping the first stage of grief, going straight to anger. 

And, as everyone piled into the church the three were given uneasy side glances. The three sat in the front seat, as Sykkuno’s family seeing as the boy didn’t have any other immediate family. A portrait of Sykkuno was put in the front, surrounded by flowers. But, the ones that stood out were the white lilies that reminded them of their other friend and it was hard to think about them. An empty coffin was up there as well, it was more patronizing than anything. But, they had a mission. One they did not take lightly. 

Toast quickly found their targets, and casually alerted the girls to them. Rae and Poki found their third of the list with their eyes. The plan shining in their eyes, or maybe that was just unshed tears. The clergy stood and started the memorial soon after. He started talking about Sykkuno, but the three friends could only feel their burning hatred as the minutes ticked by. People kept glancing at them uneasily, but they didn’t understand. They never would. None of them knew Sykkuno like they do...did. Like they did. 

“Would anyone want to say something about Sykkuno?” The clergy asks, he looks at Toast as the man raises his hand and nods to him. Toast stood and everyone watched as he went up to the podium, the clergy stepping back to let Toast speak. He looks at the crowd with a sharp eye, yet there are unshed tears as well.

“Sykkuno wasn’t just a friend, he was our family. He was always our light when things seemed bleak. And, in the end, he only wanted us to be happy and to stick together. And for what we are about to do, I ask his forgiveness.” Toast said and the crowd looked confused. “He was never one to condone violence, rather he was a pacifist and would never want for his friends to do what we are about to do. But, the injustice of his death calls for true justice.” Everyone started to sweat, especially as Rae and Poki stood at the same time. 

The two females took out their weapons, Rae swung her warhammer and it crashed into the ground breaking the tile there. Poki brandished her two blades threateningly. Toast took out his and smirked bittersweetly as he brandished his blade. The crowd jumped back terrified.

“I forbid you from doing such an act in this house of God!” The clergy demanded, Toast deadpanned at him. Almost daring the older man to try and stop them. The clergy cowered and started praying to himself.

Rae and Poki stalked the crowd, like a pair of vultures. It was Rae who took the first blood, and It was Toast who took the last. The remaining people were stock still in their seats as the group of three put away their weapons. They then left, they didn’t stop walking until they reached the forest. The grand oak and evergreen trees towered before them, they were darker than normal trees of that type but they were still just as grand before them. The three locked hands and entered the forest deeper. It was just the three of them now, blood still covered their hands and their clothes. The three didn’t imagine needing to change, seeing as they were going to their deaths. Or so they thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello you wonderful people! I tried to edit this one but I probably no doubt missed something. I'm sure I'll edit it when I reread my own story later. Thanks for all the love in the comments, it really makes my day!


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning, Sykkuno rose from the bed and stretched with a yawn. The very act of moving caused the rose that had taken residence in his hair to stir and shift around before nuzzling his forehead lovingly with soft petals. Sykkuno giggled softly as he pet the rose, silently saying good morning. He then straightens himself and notices a folded pile of clothes by the door, he fights the urge to tilt his head knowing Bimbus would probably hate him for it. He then shuffled over and noticed a note on the clothes. He crouched down to pick it up and read it with a small smile.

“ Yesterday I saw that you didn’t have anything packed, so I stole some of my fiancé’s clothes for you! Hehe~ Hopefully they fit you! \- Lily”

His smile grew wider, Lily hadn’t changed at all it seems. She was still just as thoughtful of everyone, even years later. Sykkuno made a mental note to thank her later. Changing into the clothes he realized that they actually fit pretty well. He then pulled on his own jacket, scarf, and boots. As he passed by the mirror he caught his own reflection and a high-pitched noise he didn’t know he could make escaped him. His hair was totally ruined. He frantically tried to get it back to its usual style, luckily due to his years of living with Lily he knew there had to be brush in the room. He then gently brushed his hair, avoiding Bimbus’s roots. Who knew having a dog-flower in your hair could cause such havoc. He relaxed once his hair was back in place, he placed the brush back in its place before turning to find his old friend. 

Stepping into the hallway he spotted Lily peering into the other guest room. She wore an eager grin, as she tried to stifle giggles behind a hand. Spotting Sykkuno, she eagerly waved him over towards her.  Sykkuno quietly made his way over, intrigued by his friend’s apparent enthusiasm. Glancing into the room he quickly noticed what Lily was giggling about.

On the bed, George and Dream lay fast asleep, but they were noticeably tangled together. George had his face buried in Dream’s neck and Dream had his arm slung around George pulling him even closer. His other hand rested on George’s hand, as if it belonged there. Dream still wore his mask, but what drew attention was that George wore the lime hoodie Dream wore yesterday. Lily’s smile shone with mischief as she pulled out a camera to snap a picture of the scene. Sykkuno looked at the device with a raised eyebrow, it was strange. It was glowing with white energy, but it was the odd shape that caught his attention. It was a box with different bits and bobs sticking out. Lily fiddled with a knob on the side. He wondered what it was, but he didn’t say anything to Lily. He certainly didn’t want her to hate him for not knowing what it was. That’s for sure. 

Lily then softly closed the door and turned to walk down the hall as Sykkuno trailed behind. Now that the house was lit by the sun’s rays he took notice of details around the house. Which he recognized as Lily’s touch, because he knew the way she decorated from the brief time they lived together. There were many pictures featuring Lily and a man just a few centimeters taller than her. Was this her fiance? They looked cute together, he had to say. They both wore large round glasses with matching smiles in the pictures. One picture stuck out in particular, in it Lily’s fiance was placing an actual lily in her hair. Sykkuno felt a little pang in his heart. He was incredibly happy for the girl who easily became his family, but on the other hand he missed this, all of it. He missed meeting her boyfriend, he missed the shovel talk, he didn’t get to be with her when she was proposed to, wasn’t able to help her through hard times, and didn’t get to see her grow up without the village on her back. Sykkuno wiped away any tears before the shorter woman could take notice of anything.

He followed behind Lily as she made her way into the kitchen, and he stood by as she took out some ingredients for breakfast. She then sprinkled some red and blue powder over the ingredients. Sykkuno could only watch in horrified awe as the ingredients began to mix themselves without any further prompting from Lily. He was sure he had to pick his jaw off the floor, but the scene was too extraordinary to look away from. It was unlike anything he had seen in the village. However, he was more shocked by the fact Lily wasn’t shocked, as if this was normal for her. It probably was after all this time. He began to wonder just how much her life had changed. Yet at the moment, all he could do was stand shocked in the kitchen.

He was abruptly ripped from his shock when what sounded like an explosion erupted from the door to his left. Large puffy clouds of powder spilled through every crack in the old wood that looked like it wanted to fall off its hinges. The powder was followed by smoke, and a few moments later the door ripped open to reveal a man covered with colorful powder and ash. It was hard to make out his features until the smoke cleared, but then he bent over to cough. He desperately tried to get the powder out of his throat and lungs. When he finally stood up fully, Sykkuno saw a man drenched in that mysterious powder. His glasses were completely covered with the substance. Even with all the powder, Sykkuno instantly recognized him as the man from the pictures adorned Lily’s walls. Lily cackled at the man, but hurried to pick up a cloth in order to help clean him up. He took notice that the cloth was stained with multiple colors and realized that it’s purpose was for incidents like this. Lifting a hand to hide a laugh, he watched as Lily scurried over to fruitlessly try and wipe away the powder on the man’s face.  The glasses clad man groaned with frustration, which honestly seemed closer to pouting. He let Lily dab his glasses clean and left her to do as she pleased. Sykkuno felt a gnawing in his gut as the two interacted with each other. He was the odd one out in life once again. Lily had been gone for so long now, and it left Sykkuno wondering if he could even say he knew her well anymore. He would never live with himself if he ruined this good moment for her by butting back into Lily’s new life. Forcibly shoving these feelings away, Sykkuno waited for them to finish.

"I was so close to getting it this time!” He whined with a frustrated pout, his brows scrunched tight together in frustration.

"I'm sure you'll get it next time! You’re really good at what you do Micheal, I’m sure you’ll be raving about it to me in no time." Lily chirped. Turning around she was reminded of Sykkuno standing in the kitchen and brightened up more. "Oh right! Michael, this is Sykkuno. He was one of my friends in the old village." 

The man, Micheal, looked Sykkuno up and down for a moment. He opened his mouth only to be interrupted by a new coughing fit, choking out a flicker of fire during the fit . He straightened back up with a small groan and cleared his throat to speak, “So this is the infamous Sykkuno I’ve heard so much about?”

"H-hey.. it’s uh, nice to meet you Mr. Micheal." Sykkuno says with his shy smile.

"The fuck is the formality for? Just call me Michael. Lily talks about you and the others all the time," Micheal confidently relayed. Sykkuno flushed slightly with embarrassment, but didn't say anything as the other continued. “Say Sykkuno… would you mind helping me test out some of my brilliant inventions some time? I always need help, but everybody is always too busyyy!” An almost wicked grin overtook Michael’s features, as he took a step forward to advance on the shy boy. Sweat started to bead on the back of Sykkuno’s neck and his fear made him step back. He raised his hands to placate the grinning man, while he tried to stutter out an excuse, but thankfully was saved by Lily’s eye roll. 

Lily turned to the now finished breakfast as she spoke, “dangit Michael! Leave poor Sykkuno alone for now. He just got here and doesn’t need you torturing him.” Sykkuno let out a small squeak of fear at that. Torture?! What was Michael doing back there?! Lily placed a place of food on the table for each of them, it looked amazing. She added a few spices and condiments to the table and had finished setting silverware down, just in time for Dream and George to stumble into the room. Everyone took their seats and when the new arrivals sat at the table, Dream’s head immediately dropped onto George’s shoulder. Dream had his mask over his face still, but his ruffled and messy hair peeked around the mask. He wore a dark green undershirt that showed the corded muscle he gained from years of training. Running around the forest and hitting things with his axe seemed to have done him a lot of good. Another noticeable thing was the lack of shiny purple armor. On the other hand, George's hair was somehow even messier than Dream’s and the man's white goggles sat crooked on his head. He was still wearing Dream's hoodie, which was noticeably a bit too big on him due to Dream’s taller stature. George rubbed his eyes gently to squint at the others for a moment, he then gave up whatever he was trying to see to observe the breakfast-laden table. He noticed that the table cloth appeared to be a darker blue color, it took his sleep-heavy mind a moment to register that it was actually probably pink. Sometimes it was really hard to tell which color was which for the colorblind boy. 

Lily doesn’t try to hide her giggles from the two of them. She pulled out the camera she folded into her pocket earlier and snapped another picture. If he remembered Lilly correctly, those were obviously for blackmail. Sykkuno found himself catching a glance the camera once more, genuinely intrigued by the strange device. It was then that he noticed little crystals circulating in the center of the camera.  Lily caught his gaze and instead turned the camera to him, snapping a picture of his own shocked face.  He  Let out a squeak of surprise and tried in vain to cover his face. Of course Lily would immediately go straight back to teasing him, just like old times. Cackling at his embarrassment, Lily decided to take pity on him and re-pocketed the device.

The rest of breakfast was eaten in relative silence. Only broken by Micheal rambling about his latest project, arms making large gestures in the air. Lily seemed to hang onto his every word, her gaze softened by love. Sykkuno sat among the group, wondering what his Family back at home would be doing right now. George tried fruitlessly to rouse Dream from his slumbering position on the smaller’s shoulder, but it only seemed to serve in making the masked man hug George closer. The gesture reminded Sykkuno of back when it was the five of them in their one house in the village. Most mornings went like this even after Lily disappeared, though usually Rae was the one ranting about whatever bugged her. He didn’t realize just how much he missed her voice, until it wasn't here anymore. He shouldn’t think about that though, the scarfed man already told himself he would never hear her voice again.

After breakfast, the guests knew they needed to get going. Dream and George quickly got into their regular armor and clothing. While Sykkuno found himself awkwardly standing by the door as the two got ready. A sense of nervousness started to push onto him. It tingled over his skin, as he tried to push it down. Finally, Sykkuno would get to meet “him” today and the nervous anticipation only grew as Dream made sure to retrieve his axe. Once the two were geared up, Dream nodded to the awkward boy that he was ready to leave. 

"Good luck you three! I’d better fucking see you at the wedding Sykkuno!" Lily yells after them as they leave. Sykkuno gave a shaky smile and a nod of his head. 

"Wait, does he have one of those deadly bitey roses in his hair? Wait!!! I should have studied it while I had the chance!" Micheal suddenly exclaimed. Lily shook her head with a loving grin plastered onto her face.

The three men made their way through the village. It buzzed with life as people  Went about their day in the marketplace. People eagerly chatted with friends and kids played games on the playground, with the sun smiling over it all. Sykkuno was amazed, it was so different and yet it shared many similarities to his own village. 

A large building came into view at the edge of town. The older looking manor was painted with dark grey walls. Flowers grew wildly along the walls in long sweeping vines that popped with vibrant colors to contrast with the dull grey paint. Grand windows stood blocked out by heavy curtains from the inside, and those that weren't were tinted white. Around the manor was a large fence made of pointed metal. The metal had been stained black and was reinforced with purple glowing chains. Which gave off a foreboding aura to Sykkuno. The gate itself had regular looking roses entwined with the pointed spikes. The roses let off a soft pink glow and behind them lay a thick grey fog that made seeing past the gate impossible.

Dream gently set down his axe to press around the roots of the roses with a determined frown on his face, barely visible under the mask. George seemed on edge, picking at the sleeves of his regular light blue hoodie. Sykkuno found his heart picking up speed from the anticipation and slight fear. The manor seemed to call to him, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know  **_why_ ** . Dream pressed something and the gates lurched open with a mighty screech. The roses twisted about to clear away a path for the trio to follow, Dream turned and picked up his axe with a cheeky grin visible below his mask.

Dream strode proudly towards the building with all the swagger of a man who just figured out a challenging puzzle. George hesitated behind the confident man, but hurried to follow after him as always. Sykkuno trailed slowly behind the two. He wouldn’t say that he was  _ scared _ , but full of nervous anticipation from not knowing what he was about to walk into. The three passed through the gate before it loudly slammed shut behind them. The roses quickly shuffled their way back into their original place, leaving the men now trapped with only the manor to escape to.

The front garden looked beautiful once the grey fog cleared. A fountain stood in the center, but rather than clear water it spouted multicolored liquid. Honestly, none of them wanted to find out what the liquid really was. Around the fountain grew several different kinds of flowers that Sykkuno had never seen before. Each bud more beautiful than the last, but something that stood out to him were tall black trees. Their long leaves swept down to the ground, providing a small shelter from the sun. The dreariness of it made Sykkuno feel like he had seen it before. Looking ahead at the building itself, he noticed the grand doors made from silver.  They glittered in the sun and had a sheen unshared by a normal metal.

Dream made his way to the door and drew his hand back to knock on the door three times with strength behind each rap. The doors shuddered open, scarcely making a squeak as they opened outward. The floor was  made of dark wood with a burnt texture to it. A soft velvet rug rested over the dark floor . Delicate red and black floral-like patterns creeped along the paper coating the walls. Above, a grand chandelier hung from the relatively high ceiling. 

Sykkuno found himself entranced by the chandelier. Made up of fragile glass-blown roses, the chandelier glowed a dim red light. It looked magical, with its cascading changing lights over the red carpet and hardwood floor. The roses slowly spun around the center attraction. Sykkuno quickly realized the carved figure of a cat royally perched among the flowers, peculiarly the cat appeared to not have any fur. The feline didn’t appear to actually be connected to the main structure, as it hung in the air to add to the strange illusion.

He followed Dream and by extent George through a maze of dark halls. Each hallway they turned down left a gradually increasing feeling of emptiness within Sykkuno. The walls were sparsely decorated, but the few paintings and pictures that did exist caught his eyes.

A portrait of a man caught his eye, and Sykkuno stooped for a moment to look at it. It featured the man sitting on a black armchair. He wore an almost bored expression, as one red eye glared at him through the picture. He got an uneasy sense of déjà-vu as the uncovered eye stared at him. It seemed so familiar, but where would he have seen that before?

He hurried to catch up so he could escape the feeling along as well as the glare. Dream pushed his way through the house,  As if he was immune to any harm within these halls . The masked man probably had all the confidence between the three of them. Finally, they come to stand before another set of silver double-doors. 

This time however, there was a mask carved into the metal. It wasn’t as full as Dream's mask, but  instead it left one eye uncovered . With sharp teeth and a rabbit looking ear to one side, the mask looked like a rotting animal face. He vaguely remembered the man wearing it in the portrait before, but it was pushed to the back of his mind as his nervousness suddenly spiked. The door thrummed with energy, bright colors seemed to zap over the silver. He was mesmerized by sparks of red, blue, purple. Yet, Dream doesn't seem to share the same sentiment.

Dream once again knocked three times and the doors slid open with no further prompting. Inside was a dark library. Books lay discarded on the floor and crammed into every inch of space on the shelves, some looking newer than others. The room was lit only by shining bottles of various colors and hues. He noticed a silhouette of a man settled on a big chair in the back of the room, but he  was the center of attention in the lonely library. . One of his eyes glowed a cold purple in the darkness, and Sykkuno felt himself swallow a lump in his throat. His eyes stayed glued to the figure in the darkness as they lifted an arm and snapped.

George and Sykkuno startled as the room suddenly filled with light. White energy started glowing from behind the walls and raced through the ceiling. In the grand black chair sat a man that seemed to squeeze the air from Sykkuno’s lungs. The man had a mess of unruly black curls on his head that appeared elegant rather than messy. He wore a dark purple mask like the one on the door, but it looked like it almost melted into his skin as if it was a permanent feature on his face. The uncovered red eye was set glaring solely at Dream, causing the other two to shuffle away from the axe-wielder nervously. Dream was left to stand alone under the man’s harsh gaze, while Sykkuno took his chance to study him further. 

The man before him had a grand black cloak draped over his shoulders. A deep blood-red tunic covered his chest and dark grey pants had been tucked into his black boots. A silver chain hung from his neck and flowed down his chest. Two more chains dripped down from his belt, and one more chain circled his wrist. Two thick rings glimmered on the same hand, while the other hand was covered with a thick black glove. In it he held a black book open halfway, looking like the man was just barely glancing at the words and not really reading it. Hooked on his belt were three small vials filled with a red, purple, and cyan liquid. Sykkuno wondered why the man had them, but felt like it would be rude for him to ask what they were for. His overall aura was threatening, almost inhuman. His presence was large and demanded respect. 

This, this is the man that everyone had been talking about. The one of which no one spoke the name of and suddenly, he understood. This man was the "creature" that his people had feared for years.  _ This was who he was sacrificed to. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we are...
> 
> Hehehehe, hah isn't my life just some stupid fucking joke?
> 
> Hoped you liked it! It was really written by GhostMooon. I was kinda...there....
> 
> Heh....hahaha. It's so funny eh?


	7. Oh Jesus.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "A cough rang out to their right and they were reminded they weren't alone, both of them looked at Dream who was smirking at them, both had a moment of a dear in headlights but thankfully Corpse quickly regained his composure quickly and walked back to his chair where he sat down elegantly. This caused Sykkuno to snap back into reality, and suddenly the loose thread on his scarf was the most interesting thing on the planet."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, YOLO.
> 
> I grew impaitient and I'm sure you guys were missing it so I'm posting this now and no one can stop me hahahahha.

The man glared at Dream for merely a moment longer, his gaze sharply piercing the fellow masked man with such hate. The hate of which Sykkuno had never seen, he almost wondered what Dream had done to anger this man this much. He looked at George who was looking between Dream and the other man with an expression of utter fear on his face. He was torn from his thought as the man of the hour cleared his throat and spoke.

"Dream." He was all but grumbled in a voice so deep Syykuno’s entire body shivered, it was deeper than any voice he had ever heard. He nervously glanced at the others wondering if it was just him, Dream looked un-bothered but George looked a little surprised. "I was having a good day...and then you walked in." He ground out, his voice like gravel as he spoke. 

Dream lets out a nervous chuckle and shuffles closer to George, which makes George fight not to move away from Dream as that sharp gaze was still piercing through the masked man. 

"You wouldn't come from your self-imposed exile without a good reason." The man then mentioned, raising an eyebrow at Dream, his gaze not lightening in the slightest.

"Well, Corpse..” He paused at the name, before continuing. “Someone was sacrificed again, and I know usually you go to the mayor but we have a special case." Dream said before gesturing at Sykkuno who immediately let out a noise of protest. He was too caught up in his own mind thinking Corpse certainly fit the man before him, and he didn’t react soon enough to stop Dream from all-out throwing him under the bus. 

Corpse's gaze turned to him and softened significantly at the sight of him, it was almost night and day difference from the glare given to Dream. It was a gentle gaze, it almost held pity for being thrown out in such a way. Sykkuno found himself meeting the eyes of this man, Corpse, and immediately he was entranced by the man’s alluring gaze. Corpse suddenly released him to rack his hands through his hair, he signed deeply as if to stop himself from getting angry. 

"That's getting really fucking annoying, why do they even bother? I don't care what goes on in their villages!" Corpse snarled, Sykkuno almost had another full-body shiver. He tried to ignore that fact as once more locked eyes with Corpse for a moment more, he felt shifting on his head and that’s when Bimbus peaked up front the little nap he was taking. Corpse immediately looks at the rose with the softest look yet from the man, Sykkuno knew he was smiling even though he couldn’t physically see it through his mask

"What did you name him?" Corpse asks suddenly, once more looking at Sykkuno with a soft look. He briefly wondered if Dream was jealous of the soft look he was getting but didn’t dare tear his eyes away from Corpse. 

"Bimbus! He's such a sweet boy, and his petals are really soft! I don't know why people are so scared of him, he's just the sweetest! " Sykkuno then gushed before covering his smile with his hand, he was so happy someone shared his enthusiasm for Bimbus and he could tell Corpse was smiling too. Both of their smiles were covered and yet neither cared.

Corpse stood suddenly, closing the book without a second thought though the man didn’t seem to be reading it that much anyway. He bent over and grabbed something from a table on his right before standing and confidently striding over the Sykkuno. He was only a bit taller than Sykkuno but he seemed so tall, Sykkuno felt like he had to look up when he really didn’t. Corpse gently and hesitantly sprinkled a few pellets from one of the tubes on Bimbus and the flower opened its mouth to eat the treats it was given with joy.

"Here, give these to him when he deserves a treat." Corpse says lightly which contrasted greatly with his dark voice "and feed him with these every two days." He hands two vials to Sykkuno, one labeled food and the other treats. Sykkuno beamed as he took the two vials and slipped them into his pocket, he forgot that Bimbus needed to eat and that fact made him want to bash his head against the wall. Though, that would probably be worse than not eating for Bimbus.

The two then locked eyes for a moment, it was almost magnetic with how often he found himself looking deep into the deep red eye that scanned him with the same fascination. Sykkuno swore he could see Corpse as who he really is just by looking into his eyes. He wasn't who he was shown to be, Sykkuno could see the insecurity deep down. Only recognizing it cause he shared the insecurity. 

A cough rang out to their right and they were reminded they weren't alone, both of them looked at Dream who was smirking at them, both had a moment of a dear in headlights but thankfully Corpse quickly regained his composure quickly and walked back to his chair where he sat down elegantly. This caused Sykkuno to snap back into reality, and suddenly the loose thread on his scarf was the most interesting thing on the planet.

"So, where is Sykkuno gonna live?" Dream asked, seeing as that was the whole reason they came here.

"He's gonna live with me." Corpse said with almost no hesitation. Sykkuno didn't know how to react, while the other two once again looked shocked. After a moment, Corpse even looked shocked with himself yet he didn’t say anything past that. Corpse was notorious for living alone in his huge manor, even his closest friends only stay for a day at most. The man hated people and social interaction so much. So this was unheard of, him inviting someone to live here.

Sykkuno didn't know what to think, he was almost curious about Corpse. Like he was a man of infinite secrets, secrets Sykkuno was dying to know. And there was this overwhelming sense that he had met this man before, yet he knows he hasn't.

"May I show you to your room?" Corpse asks gently and Sykkuno nods. The other man stands to his full height and gives Dream another glare as they pass the two of them going out the doors, he then gestures for them to leave. Dream and George shuffle out of the room and most likely the house. Their footsteps carried away and Corpse seemed to look after them for sometime before visibly relaxing.

It was just the two of them now, Corpse looked at Sykkuno and smiled despite the fact Sykkuno couldn't see it. Corpse started walking ahead silently, his dark cloak billowing behind him dramatically. Sykkuno followed, watching the fabric in awe for a moment, he looked around at what was now his home. It was all pretty dark, no sunlight getting through the thick curtains and the dark wall paper did nothing to brighten it.

After a flight of stairs and some more walking, Corpse opens the door to a room, unlike the others it was relatively light in color and not something he imagined Corpse would choose for his home. The walls were porcelain white and the curtains were thin letting the sun into the room, it was a nice room and a huge outlier compared to the rest of the house. It was also bigger than any room he's ever had, but when you have a substantial number of roommates you get used to smaller rooms. 

"This was one of the guest rooms, but I guess it's yours now." Corpse said before rubbing his neck, he seemed more nervous now that it was just the two of them. They had just met but there was this sort of, natural intimacy between them.

"Um, some house rules. Don't go into my room because honestly it's a fucking wreck in there and I don't want you to hurt yourself on any glass that may be on the floor. Don't go into my lab, it’s just a bad place to be unless you’re me. Mostly cause I don’t organize that well...Um, that’s basically it. Fuck, probably should give you a tour…” Corpse seems to grow less and less confident, Sykkuno smiles at him sweetly, Bimbus tilts his head at Corpse, or would it be more accurate to say he titled his bud? 

Sykkuno giggled sweetly, hiding behind one hand to try and stifle the sound and hide his smile. Corpse ducked his head slightly, his blushing face covered by both his mask and his hair. Sykkuno looked at the mess of black curls and wondered what they felt like, they looked soft to the touch. He then shook his head, Bimbus lightly bites him and he pets the rose in apology. It can be surprisingly easy to forget you have a rose in your hair.

“Um, anyway. I’ll show you around I guess. Sorry if the house is a mess, I never have visitors...or housemates...or anyone because I don’t like ...people” Corpse said, getting more and more quiet with each word and Sykkuno thought this softer side of Corpse seemed to fit the man more than his intimidating side. 

Meanwhile, just down the road two boys were giggling together at a small cafe as grown men do. This is obviously our favorite boys, Dream and George sitting together as they sip on some brightly colored drinks. They seemed to glow green with magic, Dream suggested it cause it looked like his hoodie. George supposed that it most likely did not that he could tell you.

“Do you think Sykkuno will be okay?” George asked suddenly

“He’ll be fine, if the look Corpse gave him is anything to go by.” Dream mentioned offhandedly as he sipped his drink.

“Wish someone could look at me like that.” George fretted, biting the straw to gis own drink

“I already do Gogy.” Dream said and George flushed pulling away from the drink.“I love you”

George just laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading everyone! Your comments really light up my day! 
> 
> Sorry about the random gap, I don't have an update schedule lol. I had to deal with School and all that. Not that I do my work...It's actually a problem...
> 
> Anyway, I'm gonna go write Chapter 13.


	8. Stumbling blindly.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "They then stumble through the grass to the middle clearing and sit in the grass, relaxing after walking for some time. Their limbs ached slightly and their eyes were half-closed with sleep by this point as the bluegrass seemed to ease all the tension and wakefulness from their body. "

Toast, Rae, and Poki were walking through the forest hand and hand, they felt eyes on them as they walked. Each sound-making one of them startle. The woods were dark and it was hard to see. The only reassurance they were still together was their hands clasped together tightly, Poki was squeezing someone’s hand in fear and they were squeezing back, Toast thought he was leading the way but he could barely see the others in the dark so he couldn’t be too sure.

They broke what seemed to be some sort of tree line and were met with large brightly colored trees, finally some light! The trees glowed magically with color, red, purple, pink, green, orange. The list goes on, some tree’s gradually shifted colors additionally. It was so magical. Unlike anything the three of them had ever seen. Which was a big amount seeing as they live in a small remote village. 

They continued walking, looking in awe at everything they were seeing. They came to a brightly lit clearing, the grass was a light blue and it was really squishy. Rae flopped down on the grass and let out a loud sigh, the grass was surprisingly comfortable almost like a pillow. Poki giggled at Rae with a huge smile, Toast was scanning the area for threats with a sharp look that softened when he looked at his companions. The eyes that had followed them throughout the forest had gone away when they entered the bright area of the forest but the presence was still present but far away. 

Rae rolls over, she peaks her head up and listens for a moment “Do you guys hear that?”

The others listened for a moment as well, they didn’t hear much other than some bugs chirping in the distance and the trees shifting in the wind. They glance at Rae like she’s finally lost it, they had only been here for a few hours at most but they did just kill half the town. She stood and looked at them expectantly, Poki shrugs noncommittally and Toast raises an eyebrow at her.

“I’m not insane guys, I hear rushing water! It’s just that way.” She points in a direction and they strain their ears once more to humor their friend and family member. Then they heard it, the sound of rushing water. It was really faint but it was there nonetheless. The three then headed in that direction, they walked to the edge of the clearing and just past the trees was a large waterfall, it was glowing red rather than blue like a normal waterfall you would see anywhere else. Poki ran her hand under it and brought her hand back almost instantly with a hiss, she looked at her hand just in time to catch a cut on her hand stitch itself back together. The others stare with her for a moment, all of them flabbergasted with what was happening.

“Magical healing water, add that to the list of things i’ve seen today.” Toast mutters to himself with a look the other two had never seen on his face. And they grew up with this man.

Rae washes the blood off her hands and finds she had all kinds of scrapes that healed themselves under the water, Toast reluctantly does the same. He doesn’t really trust the water but it’s worked for his friends and since they did such a great job at being ginny pigs. The three marveled over such a miracle for a moment, never having seen anything quite like it before, Rae pulled out a canteen they didn’t even know she had until now as she filled it with magic healing water. 

They then stumble through the grass to the middle clearing and sit in the grass, relaxing after walking for some time. Their limbs ached slightly and their eyes were half-closed with sleep by this point as the bluegrass seemed to ease all the tension and wakefulness from their body. 

"I say we stay here until morning, rest up a bit." Toast said and the two girls nodded before letting out a yawn one after another. Rae lays down trying to sleep a bit, eventually she does just drift off. The others watch for a moment before looking at each other, Toast raises an eyebrow at the question written all over Poki's face.

"Hey, do you think….Do you think Sykkuno might be alive in this forest? We aren't dead yet." Poki mentioned playing with the grass between two of her fingers, twirling and folding it. 

Toast watches her play with the grass for some time, he thinks about it. Mulls it over for a moment. There was clearly water but he didn't know about food, so in theory he is fine just a bit starved. That was in the more probable world where there was no settlement inside the forest, but if there was. Then it was possible Sykkuno was there now, just fine. Maybe a bit shaken, but perfectly okay. 

"Maybe Poki, maybe." He says instead of spilling his thoughts, he didn't want to get her hopes up. With that thought she too lays down and tries to get some sleep. 

And like that, Toast was left alone to his thinking. Would Sykkuno be fine? If they were fine for this long then in theory so would Sykkuno. Toast sat there thinking for a moment thoughts stirring in his mind, Poki suddenly rolled around and glared at him.

“Toast, go to bed already. The whole world can hear you thinking.” Poki grumbles darkly and Toast lets out a small huff before lying down. Who knows what lies ahead for the three of them, but he can only hope nothing comes for them in the night. And with that final thought he finally relinquished to the world of sleep.

The sun rose over the forest and into the clearing a few hours later, Rae who was never one to wake up without force was still fast asleep, something that makes the other two jealous as they are awakened eather rudely by the sun. Toast rubs his eyes a bit as Poki kinda just flops onto her belly and screams into the grass. Which was not only soft but really good at canceling noise. 

Toast stood and wobbled a bit as his limbs were so relaxed the effort to stand was immense, Poki took it slower than him with only a little more success. It was almost like the grass made their bodies relax completely, to the point their limbs were being jolted at the thought of being used. Toast scopes out the area and finds it relatively clear. He looks in the direction of the waterfall and blinks a few times as it was so clear in the daylight. It was a wonder he and Poki couldn't hear it the first time. They were all a bit tired, maybe that explained it.

“What do we do now Toast? We didn’t think too far past escaping to the forest.” Poki said, her voice tinted with worry.

“That’s funny Poki, cause you know I always think ahead.” Toast said, he might be bluffing slightly but Poki didn’t need to know that. Plus, he could come up with some sort of plan before she really needs to know. Poki didn’t see through his slight lie and smiled relieved. 

“Of course, why did I ever doubt you Toast?” Poki expressed 

“Good question, just like who is gonna wake up sleeping beauty over there?” Toast says gesturing to Rae. Who was blissfully still asleep like some goddess, if goddesses slept on their backs like an upside-down starfish that is. 

Poki thought about it for a moment before taking the canteen from Rae's belongings and pouring the red water on Rae’s face, the girl sputtered out as she was woken up abruptly from a dream of the three of them running around on a raft with Sykkuno by their side. Poki giggled as Rae glared at her sharply.

“What was that for?!” Rae yells and Poki just runs away like an absolute troll. Then, a dramatic chase ensues as Poki runs around laughing as Rae chases her. Toast just watched amused. Suddenly, that presence made itself known again. It felt closer yet still a bit far. Toast began to wonder what was that way. 

“POKI!! GET BACK HERE OR I WILL HIT YOU WITH MY WARHAMMER!!!!” Rae yelled and Poki laughed harder. Toast watched them, they should probably get moving but he’ll let the girls have their fun. At least for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thanks for being so patient with the updates! I'm so excited for the next chapter though. I hope this wasn't overly depressing lol.
> 
> Also, If you pay me a certain amount of money I'll send you the entire document where I write (Onto like chapter 14). Like, you can literally watch me write. Jk, jk. I don't even have a PayPal.
> 
> Feel free to leave comments, they really brighten my day!


	9. Oh Bingus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Corpse was watching Sykkuno gush at all the beautiful plants with the biggest look of absolute glee on his face. Corpse looked and didn’t see anything too impressive. But, if Sykkuno found it interesting. Then, well Corpse certainly wouldn’t mind."

Corpse was extremely nervous right now, he didn’t know why he decided this was a good idea. He didn’t know why he decided, any of this, was a good idea. There was a reason he wanted to live alone, yet when he looked at Sykkuno it just seemed like the best decision he’s ever made in his life. Sykkuno made everything brighter with just his presence alone. So if you asked why Corpse was sweating as he walked down the halls of his own home he wouldn’t be able to tell you. Though, that could be due to the fact his throat was closing in nervousness.

Sykkuno was happily humming to himself, blissfully unaware of Corpse’s mental breakdown, he was looking at all the pictures and paintings on the wall. Yet, there was not one mirror to be seen. Corpse knew why there were none, he hated looking at himself. Just the thought of it made the man feel queasy. 

They made it to his bedroom, the door was painted black. He almost flinched at the claw marks scarring the wood around the doorknob, Bingus what if Sykkuno hated him for being such a monster? He just couldn’t help it, when he was really mad his demon half reared its ugly head and...He doesn’t like to think about when that happens. It just wasn’t fun for anyone involved and it makes him hate himself even more when it happens.

“This is my room. As I mentioned, don’t go in there. I don’t want you getting hurt. If I disappear for a few days don’t go in either. I’ll be fine... Probably. It’s not that impressive either, just a room.” Corpse swallowed a lump in his throat which somehow made it worse as his throat screamed at him.

Sykkuno nodded sweetly, a small smile on his face. Corpse burned the image into his brain, Sykkuno was so cute. It just had to be illegal. Corpse looked away, feeling a bit dizzy with all this emotion he gets. He didn’t understand why he felt like this, especially when he looked at the cute boy with one of his roses tangled in his hair. Oh Bingus, this is a mistake. Corpse then continued walking, checking if Sykkuno was following him. Sykkuno was right behind him, smiling when their eyes met briefly. This man... this man right here is gonna kill him and Corpse wasn’t opposed to it. 

The tour continued, they passed other insignificant rooms that Corpse didn’t really need. The kitchen, which honestly was kinda depressing. The cabinets were open and there was nothing in them, except for an old plate set he had forgotten about. The pantry was no doubt only full of canned meats and vegetables that he used to eat before his throat decided to fuck him over. However, looking at it all now he started to realize just how bad his eating habits had gotten. Bingus, it made his cheeks turn pink in embarrassment. He turned away quickly, missing the worried look Sykkuno gave him. The living room, which was covered in a thick layer of dust that lay on all the furniture like a fleece blanket. He really wasn’t ready for visitors, much less a housemate, that one was for sure. He was so embarrassed of himself for letting it get like this. The library, where they had met to begin with. It was possibly the only room relatively clean, except for all the books and potions everywhere. It was also his office seeing as his old one was a bit...decimated, he kinda threw- er spilled a potion or two in that room and it all out exploded and caused other potions to spill, and really he shouldn’t get into the details. 

Finally, they got to the solid wood doors of the room he knew best. He pressed his hand against it and felt the old wood, each grain felt familiar against his palm and it reminded him of all the times he’s replaced this poor door, as well as its brothers due to a few failed experiments here and there. He usually came out unscathed, if watching your skin burn counted as unscathed. A small smile graces his face, not that you could tell. He looked back at Sykkuno who was looking at him with a small smile, his head tilted slightly in curiosity. Bimbus was trying to eat a fly that had stumbled into the house, it was actually adorable to watch and Corpse had a hard time choosing just who to focus on.

“This, this is my lab. It’s where I make my potions. I’m an alchemist you see...I do a decent job I guess.” Corpse says, yet there was admiration in his voice. “It can be dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. So, please don’t go in alone...I don’t want you getting hurt.” Corpse then added and Sykkuno nodded, which made Bimbus miss the fly again. The rose was not happy and pouted lightly, Corpse had to stifle a laugh at the rose’s reaction. Finally, the rose catches the fly and happily munches on it, Corpse then remembered he was talking to Sykkuno and looked at said boy.

“The lab has three entrances, this one. One on the backside of the house, and the one connected to the garden.” Corpse then mentioned, “Um, yeah the garden…” He had forgotten about it, it was just his little place that he had never shown anyone before. 

Sykkuno visibly brightened at the mention of the place, which Corpse thought was impossible cause he was already as bright as the sun, breaking through the rain clouds just to smile at him. It was kind of cute how excited he was at the mention of the garden. Wait, what was he thinking? He turned on his heel quickly and went to the large glass doors that lead to the garden. They were quite beautiful, they had black swirls on the edges but otherwise, it was just white glass. 

“The garden, it isn’t anything too impressive but it’s crucial for my potions.” Corpse said, looking at Sykkuno for confirmation before he turns and pushes open the two doors to the garden, his muscles screaming at him for even trying. But as usual, he ignored it in favor of letting Sykkuno look at the garden. 

Sykkuno was in visible awe, he could only think that Corpse was lying when he said it wasn’t impressive. But that might have been because Sykkuno wasn’t used to magic and everything was new and beautiful to him. There were multiple different types of grasses of almost every color, they mixed together seamlessly. And on this grass were hundreds of different flowers, most of which Sykkuno had never seen. A few were even chilling in the breeze as like Bimbus they had a mind of their own, and they all blinked at Sykkuno before going back to just vibing. But, in the center of the garden, there was a huge tree that was completely black except for the multitude of colored saps dripping from deep within. It was amazing, black branches extended from the trunk letting darkly colored leaves drip down almost hiding the bright colors of the sap. It looked like a really nice place to hide from the sun, just as long as you didn’t get any of the sap on you. 

In the meantime, Corpse was watching Sykkuno gush at all the beautiful plants with the biggest look of absolute glee on his face. Corpse looked and didn’t see anything too impressive. But, if Sykkuno found it interesting. Then, well Corpse certainly wouldn’t mind. Especially because Sykkuno was so happy. It was suddenly his life mission to do anything and everything to make Sykkuno happy, and as he watched the boy glance around in awe he felt his own smile grow. Corpse stood there for a moment before deciding that was all Sykkuno needed to see of the house. 

“That’s basically my home, I know it’s not that impressive but I wasn’t expecting to have a housemate...ever.” Corpse found himself rubbing his neck nervously, his own black curls getting caught on his rings so he eventually stopped just so he didn’t pull a strand out. 

“This is really cool Mr. Corpse! Can I come to the garden whenever I want?” Sykkuno asks with the biggest pleading look Corpse had ever seen, Bimbus chipped in with a rosey puppy dog face. They are both too cute for their own good, that Corpse was sure of.

“Yeah, yeah.” Especially if he looks like that, then he could have anything. Corpse then realized that he was an absolute simp for this man. Well, maybe that’s not a bad thing.

Sykkuno ventures into the garden and sits down on a patch of blue grass, calmly touching a patch of red. It was different from the blue which was soft and comfortable, it was not only a different texture and color but it seemed to make his hands tingle a bit as he touched it. Corpse follows behind, nervous Sykkuno would hurt himself on one of the more harmful substances in his garden. 

“That’s red grass from the western part of the forest, it’s known for its potent healing properties. It’s really good in health potions and most medicines.” Corpse felt the need to explain. Sykkuno looked at him curiously, both him and Bimbus seemed to tilt their head at him. 

“Could you tell me about all of it?” He then asks, looking at Corpse hopefully. Corpse swore to Bingus and all things holy that this man was gonna be the death of him and it would be because of that pleading look. 

“Yeah.” Corpse said without any more thought necessary.

Sykkuno reached towards the glorious black tree, towards what he thought was red sap that erupted from the dark bark just to be seen. His fingers were about to graze it when Corpse grabbed his wrist, causing both of them to stare at Corpse’s hand as it kept Sykkuno from reaching any further, neither chose to openly acknowledge the sparks that went through them at the touch. Corpse coughed lightly because too hard and he would fuck up his throat even worse, “Sorry, that’s pink sap. Often mistaken for red sap. It uh, does harm to whoever touches it. It can be used in potions though.” Sykkuno then smiled lightly at Corpse as if to thank him. Corpse turns pink under his mask and slowly releases Sykkuno’s hand. Trusting Sykkuno to not touch the pink substance, well he supposed it looked more like red in some lights but he’s grown to notice the difference in an instant.

Sykkuno is more careful as he points at things and Corpse happily explains exactly what he was pointing at. He didn't notice how close they were until they were shoulder and shoulder, pressed against each other. He could feel Sykkuno breathe as he gently pets one of the flowers, which makes Bimbus really jealous and the rose just mopes sadly. 

He gently eased away from Sykkuno without alerting the boy to it, despite that Sykkuno’s touch lingered and he almost missed it. His gaze shifted to the moping rose and he reached up to gently pet Bimbus, the rose excitedly pushing into his hand at the touch, going from full on moping to excitement in mere seconds. Bimbus really was the cutest. He looked down and noticed Sykkuno smiling at him, Bingus that smile did something to Corpse. He felt his heart rate pick up and butterflies made themselves known in his stomach, he had never felt like this before and he was almost scared. Was it a bad thing? It felt bad, with his heartbeat ringing in his ears and his hands trembling slightly.

"I made the tree myself actually, I spliced a couple of trees together so I could get all colors of sap for potions. Though, I don't know why it turned black…" Corpse suddenly sputtered with a hint of admiration over the tree, he gently got some green sap on his finger. "Here, try this." 

He didn't know what he meant exactly by try this but he didn’t get long to ponder before his brain short-circuited as Sykkuno leaned over and gently licked his finger clean of the green sap and then hummed at the taste as he pulled away with Corpse still holding his finger up like an idiot, he placed his hand in his lap next to where his jaw dropped. Corpse knew from experience that the green tasted really good but didn't have any magical properties, it was the first thing that popped into his newly reset mind. Just pure facts, Sykkuno wanted to know the facts right? Bingus, his heart was racing so fast he was sure he was gonna have a heart attack at this rate.

"That tastes pretty good." Sykkuno then said, like he didn't just cause Corpse's brain to crash completely. Sykkuno flushed slightly at his own daring, seemingly surprised with himself. Sykkuno then licks his lips again and Corpse can’t help but watch. His lips did look really soft, and Corpse turned his head mentally scolding himself for thinking such thoughts. 

"Y-yeah, green sap tastes really good. But doesn't have any magical properties. I use it to make potions taste better when I can." Corpse says quickly to try and get something out of his mouth, though his throat seems to be aching from all this speaking. He didn’t speak this much usually and it was really starting to take a toll. 

"That's really cool Mr. Corpse." Sykkuno chirps excitedly before hiding his huge smile behind his hand, a habit Corpse had come to know surprisingly well in such a short time.

"You can just call me Corpse, seeing as you live with me…" Corpse said, before looking down at his hands for a moment. Suddenly remembering all the people that had left him before, remembering all the people that abandoned him. He didn’t want his new friends to abandon him so he never let them stay too long. But, Sykkuno would probably hate him by the end of the month, if not the week... "At least for the meantime." He added sadly after lamenting for a moment more, Sykkuno gave an unreadable look before looking at his hands and messing with the green jacket he wore. The soft fabric rubbing against his fingers as he tried to hide his curiosity for who had hurt his new housemate, it would be incredibly rude to ask him this and he certainly didn’t want Corpse to hate him

"Okay, M- Corpse." Sykkuno finally says with a small smile as he looks over at Corpse.

Oh Bingus, this boy was gonna kill him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's day!!!❤❤❤❤
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter, cause this chapter is my favorite and I love it so much. I thought it was appropriate for today, despite the fact it wasn't planned for today. 
> 
> Anyway, I'm gonna go vibe as a single Pringle. Feel free to comment! They really make my day.


	10. Lost at Mushroom.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What are your plans Toast?" Rae asks looking ahead deeper into the forest ahead of them.
> 
> "If I told you that Rae, then what fun would it be?" Toast said with a grin,

The chase was ended when Rae tackled Poki to the ground with a soft umpth as the grass cushioned their fall, Rae stood victorious and made a few poses before turning around to offer her hand to Poki, Poki took it and Rae pulled her up with a huge smile. The two girls then both giggled, Toast finally stood to his full height with a sense of finality. He presses his hand against the hilt of his blade and glances at the others for a moment.

“We should get moving, I don’t know if staying here for too long would be to our advantage,” Toast said after a moment to collect his thoughts, the two girls look at him before nodding. 

Rae goes to refill her canteen as Poki had spilled a significant portion of it and they didn’t really know when they would find water next and it was good to have in case one of them got hurt on the journey ahead. Then the three meet up back in the center of the clearing, making sure they didn't drop or leave anything behind. Once that was done, Toast turned and headed for the trees towards the presence.

"I say that we go this way." Toast mentioned touching the surprisingly warm bark of one of the trees, and for a moment he paused.

"What are your plans Toast?" Rae asks looking ahead deeper into the forest ahead of them.

"If I told you that Rae, then what fun would it be?" Toast said with a grin, he wasn't gonna admit his lack of a complete plan just yet. Rae deadpans at him and Poki giggles at the two of them. 

Toast steps off the soft bluegrass of the clearing and finds himself stepping on more crunchy dark bluegrass. The trees looked like normal trees when hit with the sun's rays, they didn't look like they glowed at all. 

It was a few moments later that a sweet song started, it was a soft bird song, unlike anything they had ever heard. The birds sang together in harmony, it was so new to the three of them and they couldn't do anything but stop to listen, trying to catch a glimpse of these birds. Finally, they spot one. The underbelly is a beautiful gradient of blue and orange, but the rest of the bird had black feathers that in some lights shined blue. What set it apart from other birds was the geometric patterns on its wings and tail feathers. The bird truly was beautiful.

The three looked at each other for a moment, all had their version of awe painted on their faces. It truly was unlike anything they had ever seen or heard. Toast glances forward, he feels the presence straight ahead but there was only rough terrain ahead, but a little to the right the terrain was much clearer. Toast decided the detour was needed seeing as they certainly didn't have the gear to climb over the over terrain. 

"This way, who knows what might be haunting us in the forest. We shouldn't linger much longer." Toast said and the girls looked at him before nodding. Toast then headed in the direction of the detour he decided they had to take, his hand brushing over the hilt of his blade to remind himself they weren't totally helpless. But who knows if their weapons would work on the creatures in this forest. 

The detour ended up leading them to a new area with muted pink grass dotted with different types of mushrooms of all sizes and colors.. The trees were thin and tall with white bark that seemed to be striped with the same dull pink as the grass. It also took a moment for the three of them to realize that the trees with pure white trunks were not trees at all, but huge mushrooms. Poki was in awe as she pet the mushrooms that were really soft surprisingly. Rae immediately plucked one from the ground and put it into a pouch she pulled from her pocket. Apparently she was the only one actually prepared, she took a few types of mushroom and put them in the pouch.

"Starting a collection Rae?" Toast teased, hand against one of the giant mushrooms it was surprisingly strong as it held Toast's weight. Rae sticks her tongue out at him. 

"Guys look!" Poki whispered and they followed her finger to a herd of deer unlike they've ever seen. They were variants of red, pink, and light brown with the accompanying mushrooms growing from their backs. The males had antlers that were spotted with mushrooms.

They watched in awe as the graceful animals ate the dull pink grass, suddenly one lifted it's head and looked at them for a full moment. Then it runs away, startling the rest of the herd causing them to run away. The three friends were also startled by the sudden movement, jumping back to an upright position.

“We should keep going, we won’t make any progress sitting here.” Toast said and the others blink at him before exchanging glances

“Where are we going Toast?” Poki asks genuinely curious 

“I say, due North” Toast said, skillfully avoiding answering the question and Poki glares at him

“Toast.” Rae warned with a slight glare

“What, don’t you guys trust my judgment?” Toast asks, throwing his arms up and dropping them quickly to show his distress with that thought.

“We do Toast, we just would like to know what the plan is.” Poki mentions, eyeing Toast

“Just trust me alright, i’m sure you’ll see in a moment.” Toast said and the two girls gave up on getting the answer from the man.

“Whatever Toast, let’s get going. Wouldn’t want to trip on any mushrooms just standing here.” Raw said darkly, but the amusement was all over her face. Poki giggled and Toast just shook his head. 

And soon the group was walking once more, Rae’s colorful mushroom collection only growing bigger as she got one of each of the colors that she sees. Toast was almost concerned she was gonna hurt herself one of these times, yet he decided not to stop her as for some reason she finds joy in the new hobby. They had a long journey ahead, and yet even Toast didn’t know where they were going. He was just hoping they would run into civilization in the forest, cause otherwise he wasn’t sure what they could do next. And that, the unknowing scared him more than anything, which is why he doesn’t tell the girls cause he doesn’t want to worry them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey...I uh, got distracted and didn't update for some time...But, here is an update? 
> 
> Um, the reason they are taking longer than Sykkuno is plot and magic. But in all seriousness they took a different route that is much slower.
> 
> I hope it wasn't the worst chapter ever, we will be getting back to Corpse and Sykkuno soon. I know this cause I'm still on Chapter 14...
> 
> Also, any editing I did manage was by a sleep deprived idiot who has been scheming with her best friend for the past month.


	11. Shy bois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And suddenly, Sykkuno couldn't stop thinking about Corpse. Almost like a switch flicking on. Drawing the blanket closer to him he sighs before leaning over to lay his head on the window sill.

Sykkuno sat in his new room, a warm blanket wrapped around him as he looked out at the stars that blinked at him sweetly, his mind was elsewhere though. Corpse had left him at nightfall, saying he was probably gonna be in the lab all night working. Sykkuno thought that Corpse should really try and get some sleep but didn't say anything seeing as he had just met Corpse. Then again, he also lives in a house with this man. Who knew life could change so much in a matter of hours, yet he couldn't say it was for the worse. 

And suddenly, Sykkuno couldn't stop thinking about Corpse. Almost like a switch flicking on. Drawing the blanket closer to him he sighs before leaning over to lay his head on the window sill. Corpse was so... handsome. That was the only word Sykkuno could think of, really he was. He has such sharp features and Sykkuno never realized he liked sharp features until now. But his hair looks so soft, he really wants to run his hands through it at least once. Would it be like soft sheep's wool or more like soft feathers? He couldn't know, not until he felt it. Sykkuno sighed watching his breath fog up the window a bit, he blinked a few times and yawned widely. While Corpse may be staying up, it was certainly bedtime for him. Bimbus was already asleep, having fallen asleep during his time of spacing out.

Sykkuno gently slipped off the chair standing up, leaving the blanket where it was seeing as that's where he got it in the first place. He gently lay on his new bed and he felt himself melt into it. It was unlike anything he had ever felt, like the bed itself was telling his body it's time to relax. He briefly got to wonder if it was because of magic, but he didn't get to think for much longer about it and he fell asleep soon after. The bed seemingly tucked him in itself and the night faded away.

Sykkuno was woken abruptly, not by the sunlight streaming through the widow but by the sound of glass shattering and wood breaking down the hall. He sat up, his body protesting heavily. He briefly wondered if Corpse was okay. He set his feet on the floor and hissed at the cold, he looked around before spotting some slippers. He bends over to reach them and grabs them, barely keeping himself from falling off the bed entirely by pressing his free hand against the wall. Once he gets them he straightens full of glee, he then puts them on and once more sets his feet on the ground. He then stood and walked to the door, he opened it and peaked his head out towards the end of the hall. He realized the sound was radiating from Corpse's room, one of two places he was forbidden to go into. 

He worried his lip, hoping Corpse was okay. He may have only known him for a day but he surely doesn't want the man hurt, Sykkuno could never wish harm on anyone. Suddenly, the dark door opened and out stepped the man he was thinking of. His hair was a mess, but more than usual because it was a whirlwind of curls but Sykkuno thought it was... cute. His knuckles were wrapped with red stained bandages, he couldn't tell if it was blood or something else. He was only wearing a white t-shirt and loose black pants, it was the most undressed Sykkuno had seen him so far and well, if he drooled a bit he blamed it on his hunger. 

And that's when Sykkuno's stomach growled loudly, he flushed deeply and found Corpse's eyes were locked on him. It was then he noticed the regular face mask was gone, replaced with a simple black fabric mask that gives a sense of familiarity he can't quite understand. They both stare at each other like a deer in headlights, he couldn't help but think Corpse's eyes were pretty, both were red-tinted gems of brown. 

"Uh, do you want something to eat" Corpse asked him, he seemingly closed in on himself a bit embarrassed.

"Y-yup, food." Sykkuno was having some sort of freak out over the fact his voice was even lower. If this is what his morning voice was like, then Sykkuno would be a pile of simp goo in a matter of weeks. 

"Um, I don't think there's much in the kitchen." Corpse mutters darkly, trying to get his mess of curls to settle down a little. It was in vain as the curls bounced up with no further prompting. Sykkuno held back a giggle that scratched at his throat wanting release.

"We could go out." Sykkuno suggests and Corpse looks at him like he's lost his mind. Sykkuno sweat nervously as Corpse looks at him like that, wondering why he was until Corpse looked away, finding the floor to suddenly be interesting. 

"I don't know about that." Corpse said, his voice shaking slightly

"I could go, I know where the market is. You just have to explain a few things, might take a while though. I'm a slow learner." Sykkuno suggested, seeing as Corpse was clearly uncomfortable with the idea of going out. 

Corpse thought for a moment, his eyes locked on the ground as he thought about it. Sykkuno moved more into the hallways and rolled on the balls of his feet slightly in anticipation. His hands clasped behind his back as he waits for Corpse to say something. 

Corpse suddenly turns into his room and closes the door, leaving a very confused Sykkuno behind him. He comes out fully dressed in all black complete with a long black cloak that, unlike the one from yesterday, had a hood. And Sykkuno realized he was wearing an eye patch now additionally. On his belt rather than the usual chains was a bag of supposedly money, yet the potion vials remained in place.

"Why don't you change Sykkuno?" Corpse said shyly

Sykkuno thought about it but realized that the only clothes he had on him were Micheal's that Lily stole, his others having been forgotten at Lily's house. He would have to retrieve them, but for now the one problem was he didn't have anything else. 

"I mean, I don't have anything to change into." Sykkuno said and Corpse blinked at him for a moment. Once more the other man shuffled into his room and came out a few minutes later with some clothes in hand. It wasn't anything too special, a light grey turtleneck and black. Corpse awkwardly shuffles over and offers the pile to Sykkuno with a small blush hidden by the mask over his face. 

Sykkuno takes it, feeling guilty for borrowing all these outfits from people. But, he didn't think to pack anything. Maybe he could get some at the market later. 

"I have to retrieve some things from my lab, meet me in the kitchen. Um, to get there it's down the stairs on the left." Corpse says awkwardly before striding down the hall and going down the stairs disappearing from view.

Sykkuno goes back to his room and changes into the outfit Corpse gave him. The sweater was a bit long, going past his waist slightly. The sleeve covering his hands in a way that was comfortable, Sykkuno thought this was the lightest thing Corpse owned, other than the white tee of course. The pants were also surprisingly loose and he ended up tucking the ends into his fur boots. He pulled on his scarf, as it was almost like a safety blanket now and looked at himself in the mirror. He looked nice, or at least he thought so. 

Sykkuno then found himself going down the stairs and to the left where after some walking he found the kitchen. It was just as empty as before and Sykkuno was peering into the pantry when Corpse arrived. He places down a few things, mainly paper and something to write with. As well as a few potions that Sykkuno didn't know what did.

"You want to help make the list? My handwriting is trash." Corpse hesitantly suggests and Sykkuno nods. 

They spent the rest of the morning creating a list of everything they needed to buy, and seeing as the entire kitchen was all but empty it was a substantial amount. Sykkuno was a bit worried about spending all this money.

"Do you have enough for all of this?" Sykkuno asks

"Yeah." Corpse responded simply, his one not concealed eye was looking at Sykkuno with a new kind of look. Sykkuno didn't think too much about it as he looked over the list one more time.

"Do you have dilfiusousional purfushiamsns?" Corpse asks

"Diffusi-what?" Sykkuno asks tilting his head

"The fancy name for purple mushrooms, I ran out the other day." Corpse's smirk was audible, Sykkuno just giggled sweetly

"Ah, that makes sense." Sykkuno said writing purple mushrooms on the page. 

Corpse looks over his shoulder at the list before nodding, he grabs the potions and tucks them into a satchel Sykkuno just now noticed was sitting on the counter next to them. Corpse busies himself with that and Sykkuno watches with a face of wonder as Corpse slings it over his shoulder.

“We should get going, most of the market closes at 3 and I want to beat the last-minute rush.” Corpse said and Sykkuno stood abruptly taking the list into his hands. Corpse reaches up and pets Bingus gently before giving the rose something to eat, Sykkuno had to admit he forgot about the rose a bit. Corpse had that effect on him, but he was glad Corpse remembered to care for the rose. “You’re gonna do all the talking, I’m gonna lead you there and give you the money. I don’t want to be recognized.” 

Sykkuno almost wondered how him talking would get him recognized, but his voice was really deep and recognizable so it makes sense that he could be recognized by his voice alone. Sykkuno felt a bit fearful to be doing all the talking but Corpse would be there too and he probably would be even more nervous. This was probably out of Corpse's comfort zone, more so than his own. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double upload for my Birthday haha.


	12. Shy bois hitting the town

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the stalls went like that, Corpse not speaking a word just pointing at what he should ask for at a particular stall. Sykkuno got a good look at what they sold in the village, it was so similar to his own village's marketplace where he and his friends sometimes sold things and yet the products were so different.

Sykkuno was following Corpse through the darkened hallways of the house, it truly fit the man that resided here for weeks at a time. Sykkuno wouldn’t admit he was gonna try and sneak some houseplants into the house like he did back in the village. His roommates usually got annoyed when yet another plant was found on an empty shelf or on top of a bookcase. Corpse opened the front doors and watched Sykkuno walk through, the doors closed behind them and once more Corpse walked ahead. The usual fog cleared rapidly as Corpse stepped through, Sykkuno followed behind. The gate opened at their arrival and Sykkuno was almost in awe with how everything seemed to react to Corpse, but it made sense seeing as he's the owner. 

They were now on the path towards the main part of town, Corpse was looking down, hiding his face even more than it was already hidden seeing as only a fourth of his face remained uncovered. Sykkuno then noticed that his hand was trembling terribly, and he realized just how scary this was for the other man.

Hesitantly he offers his hand to Corpse, and he can tell Corpse gives him a side glance before hesitantly latching on. "Is this okay?" Sykkuno asks and Corpse nods slowly.

They walk into the marketplace hand and hand, Corpse trying to disappear completely as there is a lot of people there. Sykkuno gently squeezes his hand to reassure him everything would be okay. Sykkuno then fished out the list and showed it to Corpse, immediately Corpse drags them to a stall in the marketplace. 

A rather muscular man was at the stand, which had an assortment of vegetables some of which Sykkuno had never seen. He smiled at them,

"What can I get for you boys?" He says and Sykkuno looks at the list. Corpse points and Sykkuno reads out what was pointed too. The man got to work gathering the vegetables listed. "Geez, you two planning a feast or something?" 

"Oh no, we just don't have anything left in the kitchen anymore." Sykkuno says sheepishly

"Well, that will be 30 ripliz." The man said handing over a rather large portion of vegetables, Corpse pulls open his small pouch and pulls out thirty red coins handing them to the man. He then takes the vegetables and puts them in the satchel, which surprised Sykkuno cause the satchel wasn't that big to begin with. He didn't get much time to think as Corpse pulled him to the next stall, their hands locked together still. 

There was a nice looking lady running this stall, Sykkuno recognized it as fruits and berries. He recognized a lot of the fruits like apples but most of the berries were nothing like he's ever seen. They were shaped weird and colored all sorts of colors.

"What can I get for you two?" She asks in a soft voice with an accent Sykkuno couldn't recognize. Corpse just points at the list once more and Sykkuno reads it for him. The lady gathers the fruit and charges them 28 ripliz and 50 szapriz for it.

The rest of the stalls went like that, Corpse not speaking a word just pointing at what he should ask for at a particular stall. Sykkuno got a good look at what they sold in the village, it was so similar to his own village's marketplace where he and his friends sometimes sold things and yet the products were so different. 

Things were much more colorful here, the fruits and vegetables having more colors than he's used too. Every color of the rainbow and more, he highly doubts you could call vegetables green since there was quite a few more colors that the green just seemed to be like any other color. Even the people who strode through the marketplace were different, some wore one color like Corpse. Light green covered with gems of beautiful colors, shades of pink, and some even wore clothes that resembled a mushroom. 

They didn't stand out at all, which kinda surprised him seeing as Corpse was wearing all black and he had a rose in his hair. But, then he also wasn't surprised at all seeing the amount of people who looked so different. One thing that did surprise him was that Corpse was putting every single item they've gotten in his satchel and he isn't even bothered by the weight. Of course, he didn't bother to ask Corpse knowing he would be met with silence. The man hasn't spoken a word since they left the manor. 

Corpse dragged Sykkuno to a rather large tent on the edge of the marketplace, it was purple but it shines pink in some lights. Corpse doesn't explain to him what it's about as he pulls both of them into the tent, not that Sykkuno expected him too.

The walls were lined with clothes, every kind he could think of lined the walls. He had never seen so much in one place, usually specialty crafters made a few items and sold them. The richer people always preferred tailors, but he and his friends made most of their clothes themselves or bought them at the marketplace. But, nothing like this was feasible to him. But, he supposed it was another difference between their worlds.

Corpse looked him up and down for a moment, tilting his head slightly. He seemed to be studying him and glancing at the clothes with a sideways glance. He then continues to drag Sykkuno around, grabbing clothes and holding them in one arm. Sykkuno was a little confused as to what was going on seeing as he had never been to a place like this before. 

They passed some other people browsing through the clothes additionally, they didn't give them a second glance. Too busy to care about two men shopping like everyone else. 

"What are we doing exactly?" Sykkuno finally asks, Corpse deadpans at him before sighing. As if he remembered where Sykkuno was from and he wouldn't understand how clothes shopping worked around here. 

Suddenly Sykkuno found himself locked in a small room with Corpse, it was in the back and it seemed pretty cramped. Corpse sighed a long shuddering breath as he sat down on the provided stool. 

"We're getting you clothes." Corpse said, the first words to him in the hours since they've left. He seemed to curl in on himself a bit as he pressed his hands against his thighs, the clothes piled on his lap. "You should try these on, I'll be outside. Just, keep what you like as long as it fits and don't keep it otherwise. Price is irrelevant." Corpse says before standing again, and he leaves shutting the door behind him. 

Sykkuno looked at the pile for a moment before picking up the first item, a green t-shirt. He then goes through the process of trying everything on and picking out what he likes and what he doesn't, he sets what he wants to buy in one pile and sets the others in another. After all that he opens the door, he sees Corpse leaning against the wall half hidden in the shadows as he calmly plays with small sparks in his uncovered hand.

Corpse looks over at the door opening, Sykkuno shyly smiles at him not knowing what to do at this point. Sykkuno ended up picking up the keep pile and helplessly looking at Corpse. Corpse's eyebrow quirks in amusement and he goes in grabbing the other pile and setting it in a large bin by the door to the tiny rooms. He then grabs Sykkuno and takes him to the people working upfront. Sykkuno deposits the clothes onto the counter and watches as they rank up the price. 

"That'll be 145 ripliz and 45 szapriz." The nice girl at the counter said and Corpse easily paid. He grabs the clothes and once more shoves it in the satchel, Sykkuno just stares at the satchel all of their groceries had disappeared into blankly, he didn't know what to think any more.

Finally the two started heading home, just in time as the last minute crowd set in as they left. He noticed Corpse was holding his hand, maybe it made Corpse less scared? But, he wouldn't mind getting used to this. Did he really just think that?

Once they got to the house, Corpse slid down the door and shoved his hands into his hair, sighing deeply and letting out long shuddering breaths. Sykkuno was worried as Corpse dug his fingers into his scalp as he tried to breathe slowly and deeply.

"Oh Jesus, Corpse are you okay?" Sykkuno asks concerned 

The man lets out a grunt that was supposed to be reassuring but it only served in making Sykkuno even more worried about his new housemate, not knowing what else to do he sat next to Corpse telling him a story about something Rae did when they were just children. Slowly Corpse recovered and listened to Sykkuno's story, he then chuckled and Sykkuno continued glad that he made Corpse happy. 

¨She really did that?” Corpse asks with an amused grin

“Yeah, got us banned for a week. We had to plead with the neighbors to get us food cause we certainly didn’t know how to hunt” Sykkuno said laughing at his own suffering.

“I’m sure all you had to do was ask Sykkuno.”Corpse said with a smirk and Sykkuno tilted his head confused.

“What do you mean?” Sykkuno asked and Corpse just laughed before standing up and walking down the hall, Sykkuno scrambled to follow, still confused as to what Corpse was talking about. 

“I’m gonna put the groceries away, why don't you take your clothes to your room.” Corpse suggests as he pulls out said clothes from the satchel. Sykkuno scoops the pile into his arms and starts slowly walking up the stairs trying not to drop any of the clothes as he goes up.

As Sykkuno put his stuff away he smiled because he had a good day with Corpse. He wouldn’t force Corpse to go out again, Sykkuno got so worried when Corpse slumped like that. And that’s when he smelt food and he was reminded of the very reason why they had gone out in the first place. So, he stumbled down the stairs more than ready for brunch, even though it was getting closer to dinner time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I hope you liked these two chapters! 
> 
> Updates have been on my end, but I do try. Recently had a small case of writers block that should pass at some point. Right now updates will remain slow.


	13. Oop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Civilization at last!" Rae proclaimed and Poki laughed while Toast shook his head. But you could tell he was also relieved, the pack of three then slowly stalked into town where the early risers at the marketplace were setting up shop, their work lightened by the sweet golden sunlight. A few people shuffled around, some barely awake as they went towards the coffee shop they love hoping for a caffeine fix. No children were out just yet, yet the earliest risers would probably be out by the afternoon to spend their time playing on the playground. There were very few people out to see their arrival in town.

After what felt like days, when really it was hours, the trio of three were beyond exhausted and Toast was glad they were so close cause otherwise he might just call it a night here, Poki and Rae were leaning against each other, they spent most of their energy bickering earlier and now they were all out exhausted.

"Are we there yet?" Rae mutters triedly, it used to be a joke but now it was a genuine question. Toast didn't have an answer so like anytime she had asked before he ignored it. That's when he spotted buildings, he was almost surprised to see them in this supposedly empty forest.  The girls spotted the buildings too and seemingly brightened, suddenly refilled with energy. Rae bounced ahead happily, finally, they arrived somewhere. She kept telling them that they almost died so many times and they didn't know whether to believe her or not, but they ended up accepting it as it wasn't too unlikely.

"Civilization at last!" Rae proclaimed and Poki laughed while Toast shook his head. But you could tell he was also relieved, the pack of three then slowly stalked into town where the early risers at the marketplace were setting up shop, their work lightened by the sweet golden sunlight. A few people shuffled around, some barely awake as they went towards the coffee shop they love hoping for a caffeine fix. No children were out just yet, yet the earliest risers would probably be out by the afternoon to spend their time playing on the playground. There were very few people out to see their arrival in town.

"Toast, where do we go now?" Poki asks

"Why don't you ask Rae for once? Why is it always me?" Toast complains, said girl spacing out as she takes in the town.

"Rae, what do we do now?" Poki then asks 

"I don't know, ask Toast." Rae replied without missing a beat and Poki gave Toast a look that read 'See, this is why'.

"Fine, case closed." Toast said bitterly before glancing around "Maybe there is an inn or someplace we can stay at, then we can ask around I guess."

"Ask around?" Poki asks

"Yeah, get more information about this place and maybe ask about a particular friend of ours." Toast said

"Wait, since we survived, and possibly Sykkuno too, do you think Lily may still be alive?" Rae asks suddenly, looking at Toast mainly but did give Poki the occasional glance. 

"The squad can be back together!" Poki cheered happily, Toast smiled but he didn't want to get his hopes up. And soon, the entire world was woken up as a house on the edge of town blew up with powder and smoke with a loud pop that forced the three to cover their ears. 

They ended up following the small crowd that walked over there zombified to complain or see what happened, overly curious about the explosion. Brightly colored smoke was pouring out the doors and two bodies stumbled from the house coughing terribly. They bent over to get the smoke out of their lungs as slowly it starts to clear.  One straightens up and it was a man they didn't recognize, he was covered with ash and powder but had the biggest smile on his face as he let out some wheezing laughs. The other follows suit, it was a female, a female that the trio knew. The trio has always known. It was Lily. She was laughing with him, didn't see the shell-shocked trio among the small crowd.  Rae reacted first, running over and basically tackling Lily in a hug. Lily was surprised to say the least, seeing as she didn't see who hugged her. 

"Lily!" Rae cheers gently holding her close

"R-rae?" Lily asks confused, and that's when Lily spotted the other two coming from the cover of the crowd. "Poki...Toast?" 

Poki and Toast nod, Poki looks like she's gonna simultaneously cry from sadness and happiness while Toast had his newest unreadable expression plastered on his face. 

"I can't believe you're alive!" Rae says, her voice breaking at the end as she held Lily close as if she would disappear if she let her go.

"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine," Lily says with a small smile

"Why didn't you come back?" Toast inquired in a mix of bitterness and hurt. Lily frowned as Rae let go, looking just as hurt as Toast sounded.

Micheal wraps an arm around her and the trio glare at the sudden intrusion to their conversation, seeing as they have never met this man or know his relation to Lily.

"That would be my fault, we got kinda busy with wedding plans," Micheal says grabbing Lily's hand to flash the ring, she deadpans at him as he basically puppets her arm. He just grins at her.

"Ah! You got engaged!" Rae cheers excitedly before frowning "You could've just come back to tell the news. I'm offended!"

"I'm as offended as Rae is." Poki starts arm crossed 

"I'm as offended as Poki is." Rae states before both girls look at Toast and he sighs

"I'm as offended as both of them." Toast grumbled bitterly causing the girls to light up. His glare only deepened and Lily giggled breaking the feud. 

"Nice to see you guys again too," Lily said

"Did you see Sykkuno?" Toast asks and they all look at Lily hopefully. 

"Uh, yeah. They went up to  _ his  _ house a few days ago." Lily mentioned with a spot on thinker face. The others all rose an eyebrow at her.

"Who are they?" Poki asks

"Oh, Sykkuno, Dream, and George. I haven't heard from any of them actually, I'm a bit worried…" Lily trailed off looking at something they couldn't see far away in the distance.  A few moments later, two figures entered their vision the trio didn't recognize them and yet Lily seemed relieved at the sight of them. One had an axe slung on his shoulder and the other didn't seem to have a weapon.

"Dream! George! I'm glad you're okay!" Lily cheers and they smile. But then Lily frowns, "Where is Sykkuno?"

"About that…" Dream mumbles

"You better fucking tell me right now or I'll take your head off Dream." Lily threatened suddenly and Poki was quick to restrain her. 

"Don't worry, Sykkuno is fine. He's just setting up in his new home." George said quickly since he didn't want Dream to lose his head. 

"His new home?" Toast inquires and the duo seems to finally notice the trio. 

"Who are they?" Dream asks, it was hard to decipher just what he was thinking due to his mask.

"This is Rae," Lily points at said girl, "Poki" point "and Toast." She says finishing by pointing at Toast. "They came from the same village as Sykkuno".

"I need to know where Sykkuno is." Rae gritted 

"He's living with  _ him  _ now." Dream said the usual emphasis on him. They don't say Corpse's name cause it might summon him and they don't want that, seeing as the guy was part demon.

"Him?" Poki asked very confused

" _Him."_ Lily said and the others looked at her expectantly. She didn't say anything more as she looked around, just now noticing her fiance was nowhere to be seen. "Micheal!?"

"Yeah?" A voice calls from the rumble and a head pops out, Lily frowns at him deeply striking a pose. "What are you doing?"

"Searching the rubble?" Micheal says with the biggest smirk on his face. Lily sighs and looks back at the trio who were still watching her expectantly.

"It's strange though, doesn't he hate visitors?" Lily says, addressing Dream and George rather than acknowledging her friends' questions.

"You should've seen the way they were looking at each other." Dream said with the largest smirk. 

"Say less!" Lily cheered and the trio just sighed since clearly, they're not getting information.

"Seriously, the not-so-heartless half-demon was totally tripping over himself to talk to Sykkuno." Dream said and Lily smiled.

"Who's simping for Sykkuno?" Rae asked, raising an eyebrow. 

She didn't receive a straight answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya everyone! Sorry again for the long wait heh. My newest group of friends convinced me to update this cause honestly, I was unsure despite being a few chapters ahead. Comments are always appreciated.
> 
> Anyway, Praise Bingus.


	14. The gangs almost together.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boom. Hurt. Breakfast. Meet up. Shirtless Corpse.

Sykkuno was awoken by a huge bang that shook the house, it came from downstairs and he stumbled from his bed triedly. He only had on Corpse's shirt of which he had kinda stolen, some pants, and a loosely put on pair of socks that looked like they were about to roll off. His hair was an absolute mess and Bimbus was still fast asleep on his head. 

He finds himself stumbling downstairs and peaking around the corner down at the lab where a tired looking Corpse stumbled through the door, shutting it behind him. Said man hissed as he brought his arm up and watched as his skin was horrifically singed away. He was mostly topless, only a few pieces of a grey work shirt held onto him as the rest burned away, he was also wearing black pants that were relatively unharmed. Pieces of his hair were on fire, sparking with rainbows of color.

"Corpse?" Sykkuno asks and the man jumps pressing his arm behind him.

"Oh, Sykkuno did I wake you?" Corpse asked nervously, his voice pitching up slightly. 

"Yeah, but that's okay." Sykkuno said, walking over to Corpse. "Give me your arm." 

"Why would you want that?" Corpse asks nervously and Sykkuno frowns at him with a gimme motion. Corpse sighs before relinquishing the arm.

Sykkuno studies the pale skin, pieces of it were patchy and burnt multiple colors. A large orange patch that seemed to be oozing stood out, it looked rather painful. The arm was also covered with a multitude of deep scars making Sykkuno suspect this has happened before. It was also then he realized this was the arm Corpse always covered with a glove.

"Are you okay Corpse?" Sykkuno asks gently, worry filling his eyes as he looked into Corpse's uncovered eye. Corpse was looking at him tenderly, it was different from how the others had looked at him and it made his heart race. 

"Yeah, this happens all the time. Just need to wait for the sizzle to go down. I usually clean the lab while that happens." Corpse says gently pulling his arm back, biting his lip to hold in a hiss of pain.

"Oh, with your arm hurting?" Sykkuno asks

"Yeah." Corpse says and Sykkuno frowns at him lightly. 

"I think you should rest Corpse, we can clean the lab later." Sykkuno said and Corpse sighed

"I don't know, I don't want the floor melting." Corpse muttered and Sykkuno looked at him pleadingly. Corpse can't say no to that. "Fine, but only until the burning stops." 

Sykkuno smiled before he found himself looking down and noticing that Corpse was a nice balance of ripped and plush. He looked like a nice cuddle buddy. And that's when Sykkuno's brain shocked itself awake. He ignored the chest before him in favor of looking into Corpse's eye, desperately trying to keep his flush down. 

"How about breakfast?" Corpse says and Sykluno nods "I'll go change, my work clothes are a bit ruined." 

Sykkuno found that he was once again convincing himself that any drooling that might've happened was because he was hungry. Not the nice view of a shirtless Corpse that was now living rent free in his brain. 

Sykkuno then decided to change as well, he got to his room and realized Corpse had seen him wearing the stolen shirt and he almost panicked but if the man didn't say anything by now then it was probably nothing.

He dressed in one of the outfits they had bought, a green shirt with these soft black pants that were unlike anything he had felt before. That's when Bimbus woke up, triedly lifting his head. Sykkuno reaches up and pets the flower gently, making the rose excitedly pushing against his hand. 

"Good morning Bimbus! Did you sleep okay?" Sykkuno asks gently and the rose seems to nod before pushing for more petting. Sykkuno obliged and pet the excited rose.

That's when he smelt something good, it was a mouth watering aroma that reminded him of breakfast at home. It made him homesick, he missed his home there with Rae and Poki, and Toast. Maybe he just missed them, they are his family after all. He wondered briefly what they were up too, maybe Rae finally got to sell things in the marketplace and they were eating well. Maybe Poki was simply being herself and brightening everyone's day. Maybe Toast was sitting in the park hunched over a chess board as he contemplated his best move. He got to the kitchen and found Corpse cooking.

If it could be called that, the different pieces were made with magic and Corpse was doing very little other than watch with a keen eye and fixing something occasionally. It was so similar to the way Lily had cooked, and yet it seemed completely different. Corpse then got out some plates and set two amazing looking breakfast burritos on the plate. He turns around and almost drops the plate when he sees Sykkuno.

"Oh, Bingus um here." Corpse offers the plate and Sykkuno takes it with a huge smile.

"Thank you Corpse, you didn't have to cook for me." Sykkuno said giving a smile 

Corpse muttered something under his breath before grabbing his own kind food seeing as he couldn't eat the same things because of his throat. And so, breakfast began with Corpse lovingly watching Sykkuno and Sykkuno being oblivious to this as he tried to kick shirtless Corpse from his mind. It was in vain.

"Can I go out today?" Sykkuno asks and Corpse almost chokes on his spit for seemingly no reason.

"Of course, I'm not forcing you to stay here. You could even move out today if you wanted. " Corpse said, but the sad glint in his eye made Sykkuno hesitant. 

"I'm probably gonna go clean up the lab then." Corpse stood and Sykkuno frowned at him.

"But you still have a lot left on your plate." Sykkuno complains, frowning when he realizes Corpse hasn even touched his food. 

"I'll eat something later, it's probably best for me to start now." Corpse says before turning away and leaving down the hall to the lab. Sykkuno frowns even deeper for a moment, a part of him already missing his newest friend. A different part was teasing him still with images of Corpse, Jesus that man is hot. Sykkuno shook his head to banish those thoughts and finished his meal.

Sykkuno places his plate in the sink where to his surprise and utter shock it started cleaning itself. He jumped slightly before watching mesmerized, his brief lapse of attentiveness was broken by glass breaking in the other room. He looked at Corpse’s lab for a moment before deciding he was going out today. Maybe he could meet up with Lily.

He stumbles once more up the stairs and finds his coat pulling it on. Sykkuno then lays his scarf on top and looks in the mirror. He lets out a small noise at the mess that is his hair, he carefully pulls it into shape, careful on the rose that has made itself at home up there. 

Sykkuno comes downstairs to Corpse leaving the lab, holding a single shard of broken glass as far away as he can with long metal tongs covered with runes. The man almost looked scared. 

"I'm gonna go out then, I'll be back by nightfall." Sykkuno told him

"If you get into trouble, I want you to say my name and summon me. Okay?" Corpse responds, staring intently at Sykkuno.

"Okay Corpse, but only when I'm in serious danger." Sykkuno said before smiling and walking through the garden. Similar to Corpse the other day it parted before him, but he guessed it was cause he did live here. 

Sykkuno exited through the gate before, taking a breath of fresh air. It didn't smell like the manor and it almost made him want to turn around. It was just something about how the other man's scent lay on everything. The smell of dark pines and smoke, it reminded him of camping with his friends. Now it reminded him of home, he doesn't remember when he started thinking of the manor as home, seeing as he's lived there roughly a week or so now. 

He walked away, past the other houses and the bustling marketplace. It was then Sykkuno realized he only vaguely knew the way back to Lily's home but, a little late to reconsider now. 

He looked around for a moment before walking towards the way that reminded him of the trip from Lily's to Corpse's house. Eventually, he saw it but it looked different as if it was just freshly pieced together. But, it was the same house nonetheless.

He knocks on the door tentatively, suddenly he was nervous he had gotten the wrong house and he just interrupted someone's day. Thankfully, the door was pulled open by Lily herself and she smiled at him widely.

"Sykkuno!" She said brightly 

"Uh, hey Lily." Sykkuno said with a smile

"Come in, you have got to tell me all the details of living with the big man himself! All of them." Lily said, pulling him inside and he made a soft eh sound. 

He was pulled into the house and sat down at the table, across from Lily. She looked at him expectantly as out of nowhere she had popcorn and tea. He wondered where exactly she got it from.

"Spill it Sykkuno." Lily said darkly and Sykkuno sputtered slightly. 

"Uh...umm...What do you want to know?" He asked nervously, cause he wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear about the man himself or the house, cause he could certainly ramble about the man himself. He thought back to this morning and tried to hide his blush behind his hand.

Before any more words could be said, the door burst open and in came Rae, who looked like she was either gonna bounce around the walls or pass out from exhaustion. It was hard to tell with her most days.

“Rae?” Sykkuno asks and she looks at him with wide eyes

“Sykkuno!!” She then tackled him in his chair and he couldn’t help the oof sound that left him as she came in contact with him. She hugged him close for a moment and he smiled at her rubbing her back.

“We thought you had died! The three of us, but I’m so glad you're okay!” She says before pulling back and looking at him fully, she narrows her eyes on Bimbus who cowers slightly burying himself further into Sykkuno’s hair. “What’s with the rose...thing?” 

“Oh! This is Bimbus! Isn’t he just the cutest!.” Sykkuno says petting the rose with a look of absolute glee on his face. Rae looked at Lily and Lily just shrugged cause she wasn’t that sure either.

“That’s great, now tell us about your new simp!” Rae says and Sykkuno tilts his head

“New simp?” He asks 

“You know, the big man himself.” Rae said, despite not knowing anything about said man, also known as Corpse.

“Oooh, him. Well, he’s rea-” He was cut off once more by Toast popping out of the room where he knows Micheal did his projects, he wasn’t covered with powder but there were a few multi colored stains on the apron that was clearly borrowed. He saw Sykkuno and beamed.

“Sykkuno, you’re okay!” Toast cheers and Sykkuno smiles innocently, Toast walks over and hugs him covering him in a green powder and his face turns red as he remembers the garden where he licked the green sap off of Corpse’s finger. He still doesn't know what possessed him to do such a thing in the first place. The other three noticed his blush.

“Oooooh, what are you thinking about Kuno?” Rae asks intrigued.

"Nothing." He says a bit quickly making the others even more intrigued. 

"Is it about him?" Lily asked with a cheeky smile before sipping her tea.

"No." Sykkuno said but he knew it was. 

"What did he do?" Rae gushed 

"It was actually something I did." Sykkuno said shyly, hiding behind his hand. Lily spits out her tea and looks at him like he has three heads.

"Oh my God, they grow up so fast." Rae said dramatically and Lily smiles at her sipping her tea once more, this time making sure it was quick. "Now spill."

"Well, we were touring the house and he took me to his private garden." The girls nodded enthusiastically "and he was explaining all the plants and stuff to me when he uh...told me to try some green sap and well...Ikindalickeditoffhisfinger." Sykkuno messes with the threads of his sweater. 

The girls awed, and Toast who was just standing quietly in the kitchen the whole time rose an eyebrow. The man then shrugs and goes back to the lab where Micheal was tangled in fifteen different wires. 

"Where are Dream and George?" Sykkuno asks 

"Oh, they left town a few hours ago. Saying they were overstaying their welcome. Or, Dream said that and George tried to convince him to stay a bit longer. But, the two left, probably so they can flirt in peace now." Rae said and Sykkuno frowned slightly since they didn't even say bye to him.

"Oh...okay!" Sykkuno said

"Tell us more about your boy toy!" Rae pressed and Sykkuno deliberately ignored her.

"Did you guys bring Poki with you? Where is she?" Sykkuno asks looking around, totally ignoring what Rae just said. 

"She went out, something about checking out the sights." Lily piped up after a minute of the three of them starting at each other. 

"Ah…" Sykkuno said, a bit disheartened that she was not here to greet him.

"She'll be back before you leave, you can say hi then." Rae said not wanting her friend to feel sad. 

"Yeah." Sykkuno mentioned, knowing that Rae was right. And yet, he still wished Poki would just come home already.

"Sykkuno, tell us more about him! I don't know anything about this guy." Rae complains dramatically and Sykkuno smiles at her sweetly.

"What do you want to know? Cause I only know so much." Sykkuno relents with a small smirk gracing his face.

"What does he look like?" Rae asks 

"Oh, well he is quite tall and pale. And his hair looks so soft, really it's the curliest black hair I've ever seen. And his eyes are so pretty, they just sparkle all the time. He is also a nice mixture between muscular and lean, like you could really cuddle against him. And, I'm gonna stop." Sykkuno covered his mouth, not expecting to go off like that. But he could honestly ramble about Corpse for another hour. He had just met Corpse and suddenly he was all he could think about. 

"Oooooooooo." Both girls cooed, both overly interested in Sykkuno's love life. 

"Why do you guys care so much? Why don't we talk about how Lily is engaged?" Sykkuno said, trying to outsource the attention as it made him really uncomfortable. 

"Hmm…True, when is the wedding anyway? You bett-'' Sykkuno zoned Rae out, once again thinking about Corpse. He wondered how he was doing, especially with that nasty injury he picked up. He seemed pretty okay but it looked really bad at the time. It was then the door burst open and in stepped a rather tired looking Poki. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! New chapter, happy merry st. Halloween eve!
> 
> Hope you liked it, comments will always be appreciated.


	15. The voice lies.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corpse has an existential crisis, that's basically it.

Poki stares at Sykkuno for a full minute, rubbing her eyes occasionally to make sure she wasn't hallucinating the boy before her. She smiled widely and tackled Sykkuno in his seat. Sykkuno let out another sound at being tackled in his seat, again. 

"You're okay! I'm glad." Poki said, hugging Sykkuno. Sykkuno smiled sweetly as he pulled the other close.

“Yup.” Sykkuno said happily, glad the band was back together again.

“Why do you have a rose on your head?” Poki asks, getting right to the important questions 

“This is Bimbus! Isn’t he adorable? Co-Er... _ He _ gave me something to care for him and everything, C... _ He _ is really just the sweetest.” Sykkuno cheered happily, petting the rose who was eager to be pet. Poki hesitantly reached up and Bimbus seemed to sniff her hand before letting her pet him. Lily looked particularly worried that Poki was gonna lose her hand or something, Rae didn’t think much of it seeing as she hasn’t encountered the rose before, and the other two boys were still in the lab doing who knows what.

Sykkuno remembered Toast only stopping by for a minute, what they were doing must be really important. He hoped he could see Toast again before he left. The thought of leaving made him worry about Corpse, he was really injured when Sykkuno left. 

Sykkuno felt a sense of guilt creep into his stomach as he thought about Corpse, maybe he shouldn't have left. Corpse said it happened all the time and that he would be fine but still Sykkuno was worried. But, maybe he should just spend some time with his friends. 

________________

Corpse sat alone in the garden, his arm held against his chest. He tried to ignore the world, the pain throughout his body. His own heart that ached for just another look at Sykkuno. He still doesn't understand why Sykkuno makes him feel this way.

His heart beats faster when Sykkuno is with him, and aches when he is away. Sykkuno has this effect where Corpse cannot focus on anything but the boy, he feels nervous around Sykkuno. He hated it, these feelings.

Corpse thought about the inevitable, what if Sykkuno had already left him? Sykkuno wasn't forced to live here, hell saying he would was a mistake. Corpse knew what it was like to be abandoned, he knew once you got to know him he wasn't worth staying around. 

His heart broke at the thoughts of Sykkuno leaving him, of Sykkuno hating him. He may die if Sykkuno hated him, go to hell and live out the rest of his days in a constant state of misery. Not because he was the one being tortured, but because hell wasn't a fun place.

His mind spirals with the thoughts of Sykkuno hating him, never wanting to see him again. He is brought back to reality by a glob of pink sap landing on the already inflamed skin of his arm. He gritted his teeth to stop the scream that wanted to escape as the wound was made even worse. 

Corpse knew he lied to Sykkuno, the sizzle didn't go down for at least a week. His arm in constant pain as it tears itself apart and rebuilds itself at the same time. Injuries of this kind were not treatable by the regular healing potions or any methods at his disposal. They could only be waited out, a long week or more of constant agony. He didn't want Sykkuno to worry about him, he doesn’t deserve his worry. 

He doesn't deserve Sykkuno. 

That was the truth of the matter, Sykkuno was too good for him. Like Alice lost in Wonderland, he didn't understand the world he was thrown into. He would find something or someone who treats him better, who interests him more. Corpse knew it was only a matter of time before Sykkuno left him for good.

The thought made his heart ache more than it ever had hurt before. More than when he ran away from home, more than when his mother dipped. More than when his father be- he dragged his mind back to the present. He didn't understand why he felt this way about Sykkuno, why the thought of losing him crushes him so much.

There was a crash from the half cleaned lab and he jumped, he stood hoping it wasn't one of the harmful potions. He opened the door and was hit by the smell of Sykkuno, it was overwhelming. The sweet smell of vanilla hit him, mixing with the flowery smell that Sykkuno emanated. Surrounding this central Sykkuno smell was the smell of burning wood and freshly opened books. 

Corpse found himself staring blankly at what had spilt, it was the red, purple, and pink swirl that made up a love potion. That was when Corpse made a revelation, one that shook him to his core.

He was in love with Sykkuno. He had never loved anyone before, but it made sense now. This was what love felt like. It couldn't be a fluke, love potions smelt like what you loved most and if he smelt Sykkuno then...

Corpse felt his back crash against the door as he felt crushed by this epiphany, he didn't know what to think. Would Sykkuno...feel the same? They had just met, maybe it was just cause Sykkuno was really nice to him and so his heart attached to any sort of affection. Yeah, it was just a small thing. It would go away just as soon as they start to get to know each other even further. 

Having lied to himself a sufficient amount he got back to cleaning the lab, seeing as he didn't want any more potions falling. Yet, the whole time he couldn't bring himself to clean up the love potion and he began to wonder if Sykkuno was doing alright. 

Corpse hisses as the wound on his arm fluctuated worse, the pain of the newly healed flesh tearing apart was substantial. It offset the relief of the repairing tears in the same flesh. He had to sit down for a moment gritting his teeth, his arm pulsing painfully. Corpse looked around and eyed the remaining things he had to clean up, he was just lucky the floor didn't melt again. Last time he had to replace the floor and it was a pain in the ass. 

His eyes landed on the love potion, why was a little potion making him think this hard? Corpse sighs as the pain subsides enough for him to stand, he gently cleans up the spilt potion and it's shattered container. Corpse finished cleaning the lab after the whole day of thinking and being in pain. 

He slips the usual glove over the inflamed arm and lets out a low hiss as it pushes against his wound, but he didn't take it off. He leaves the lab and hesitantly peeks out the window to see the sun would be setting soon, maybe Sykkuno would be back soon. 

A small part of him expected Sykkuno to never come back, and he tried to push down the voice whispering that to him. But, he was not disappointed when he saw the outline of a man with a flower in his hair. Corpse then frowns as he notices three shadows behind said man, two females and another male.

"Wow Sykkuno, this is where you're staying?" One of the girls asked, she was wearing a fluffy fur coat that had fake bear ears sewn on. 

"Yeah, it is." Sykkuno said and just hearing his voice made Corpse relax.

"Where is this new simp of yours?" The second female asks, she was wearing a flattering red shirt and black pants. 

"O-oh, he's inside." Sykkuno nervously rubs his neck.

"Can we meet him?" The other male asks Sykkuno, eyeing the house. Well, you couldn't really tell he was eyeing the house cause of the sunglasses that Corpse recognized from the marketplace. 

"Ah. He doesn't like other people, I'm not sure if he'll be comfortable meeting you guys." Sykkuno said and Corpse admired how considerate Sykkuno was.

The two girls pouted but accepted the answer anyway, the four shared a hug and a few words were whispered between them. Corpse didn't bother to try and listen, only able to hear because of a certain amount of magic. 

Sykkuno then headed towards the house and the doors parted before him as he entered, the other three disappeared as the fog that had been missing throughout the day suddenly descended. Sykkuno fitting in the only pocket clear of fog. 

Corpse moves away trying to act like he wasn't just watching them intently, he moves to the kitchen and quickly starts throwing together a meal. Sykkuno was probably hungry after being out all day, not to mention the fact he himself hasn't had anything today.

"Corpse, I'm home!" Sykkuno calls and Corpse smiles happily as he exits the kitchen to greet Sykkuno.

"You're back!" Corpse says, cursing himself for sounding so excited. Sykkuno just smiled, he didn't cover it for once and Corpse took a moment to thank Bingus for the sight that is Sykkuno's smile. Sykkuno covered his smile soon after.

"Your smile is really pretty." Corpse says without thinking and the two of them blush looking away from each other.

"T-thanks." Sykkuno said shyly

"Anyway, dinner should be done...if you're hungry." Corpse said softly

"Uh yeah, I haven't eaten since breakfast." Sykkuno said "Did you eat something?" 

"Yeah." Corpse said, you know like a liar. 

"How is your injury?" Sykkuno asks, eyeing the gloved arm.

"Better." Corpse lied easily, despite the fact his arm still hurt like it was being burned by the hottest embers of hell. Sykkuno didn't see anything wrong since Corpse's voice didn't waver.

"I'm glad, I was worried about it hurting you." Sykkuno said and the two finally started towards the kitchen.

The food was made and ready to be served when they entered, Corpse served them and placed a plate in front of Sykkuno. 

"Thank you for making dinner." Sykkuno said happily and Corpse nodded slowly. Sykkuno starts eating and Corpse looks down at his own plate. Dread filling him because he certainly couldn't eat without taking his mask off and he didn't want to give Sykkuno another reason to hate him. 

Sykkuno seemed to notice him glaring at his plate because he said "I can leave if you'd be more comfortable." Dear Bingus, this man is an angel. 

"No, you can eat..I'll go eat alone in my lab or something." Corpse said nervously as he stood, holding his plate with two slightly shaking hands. 

Corpse then left and went to his lab where he set down his food and ran his hands through his hair with a long drawn out sigh. He looked at the innocent meal and hesitantly removed his mask, immediately at the loss of the restriction his teeth grew sharper as they were allowed more room.

He managed maybe half the plate, before he slipped his mask back on and went to clean up. He found Sykkuno sleeping on the table, his plate pushed in front of him. Corpse smiles sweetly and cleans up their plates before picking up Sykkuno gently so as to not rouse him. 

Then starts the journey of getting Sykkuno to his room, Corpse holding the sleeping boy to his chest carefully. Stopping when he feared Sykkuno would wake up. Finally, he pushed the door open to Sykkuno's room and tried to dress him down a bit before tucking him into bed. 

Corpse watched him nuzzle into bed cutely for a moment, his heart pounding as the image sears itself into his brain. Corpse hesitates for a moment, before leaning down and pulling his mask down slightly. Leaving a small good night kiss on Sykkuno's forehead. 

Corpse then all but sprinted to his room, in a flustered mess cause he couldn't believe he had just done that. But it just felt right. Corpse went to bed thinking of Sykkuno, and possibly had a decent sleep for once. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Who else is excited for Midnight?
> 
> Anyway, I'm posting a new story today, and here's the sales pitch:
> 
> Depression.
> 
> Thank you for reading everyone! Don't forget to stream Daywalker boys.


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